Sunday

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Sunday, 2 March 2014 : 8th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 4 : 1-5

Let everyone then see us as the servants of Christ and stewards of the secret works of God. Being stewards, faithfulness shall be demanded of us; but I do not mind if you or any human court judges me. I do not even judge myself; my conscience indeed does not accuse me of anything, but that is not enough for me to be set right with God : the Lord is the One who judges me.

Therefore, do not judge before the time, until the coming of the Lord. He will bring to light whatever was hidden in darkness and will disclose the secret intentions of the hearts. Then each one will receive praise from God.

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Sunday, 2 March 2014 : 8th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 61 : 2-3, 6-7, 8-9ab

My soul finds rest in God alone; from Him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and salvation; with Him as my stronghold, I shall not be overcome.

Find rest in God alone, o my soul; from Him comes my hope. He alone is my rock and my salvation; with Him as my stronghold, I shall not be overcome.

On God rests my salvation and my honour; He is my refuge, my mighty Rock. Trust in Him at all times, my people; pour out your hearts before Him.

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Sunday, 2 March 2014 : 8th Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Isaiah 49 : 14-15

But Zion said : “YHVH has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.”

Can a woman forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child of her womb? Yet though she forget, I will never forget you.

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus taught us the truth about God’s laws, as revealed first through Moses, which the people had often misinterpreted and took it at the face value and keep it just at that. Many failed to see the true intention of God’s laws and ordinances, and their true purpose. God did not intend for His laws to punish or pressure His people with burden, because He intended His laws for love.

That was why Jesus showed God’s people, that His laws should not be interpreted in a way that exclude love out of the equation. The ancient laws and customs of the Jewish people included the concept of vengeance and revenge, named accurately, ‘do ut des’, which means that one receives what one has given, or the concept of reciprocity.

That when translated into how the people carried out the laws of God means that a particularly harsh way of dealing with crimes and how to punish these lawbreakers. They had those who had committed a crime to pay back exactly what they had committed, and that is why the term, an eye for an eye and so on and so forth.

The result was clear, the community of the people of God, that is Israel, became a society governed with fear, prejudice and hatred, that is very far from what God intended for them, that is to build upon a community of love and inclusiveness. The people became boxed in into their obedience to the law, and the fear of God and His wrath should they disobey the law.

Yet, in doing so, under the guidance of the Pharisees in particular, the laws had been lost in its true meaning, often covered by false obedience and empty observations of the law. Jesus showed them that there is a need for the understanding of the purpose of the Law. The Law is about love, and in obeying the law, the people of God have to observe love in all their actions and deeds.

And this love is in fact not the same kind of love that we are often accustomed to in this world. The love that we know about in this world is often a very selfish love. Just as Jesus had said, we often love only those who love us back, and we do not love our enemies and those who hate us. We hate them back and even curse at them as best as we can.

And in our understanding of love, we even have it at an even more flawed level, one that is mingled with lust, greed and human desire. Our form of love is corrupted by desire and wickedness. We lust and desire for worldly pleasures, and that results in us failing further to understand what God truly intends for us.

We are often prejudiced and choosy in our love, and we give no love to those whom we do not love, and those who hate us. But the Lord shows us that when we love we cannot be prejudiced, and we have to be selfless in giving our love. Love should be given to all around us, and even to those who hate and persecute us. If we love only those who already love us, then what we do to them are not quite as meaningful as if we love those who hate us.

The Lord shows us that He knows about what it means to value-add our faith, and the love that is in this world. Loving our enemies and those who hate us will in itself help them to understand love, and hopefully that they will be awakened from their slumber in darkness and in the seas of hate. It falls upon us then, for us to show love to them. If we show them hate instead of love, then we are likely to end up dooming them to hate, and we will be held responsible for that too.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, in line with what Jesus had taught and shown us, we have to change our perspectives of those around us, our brothers and sisters. We must not be judgmental or be filled with prejudice. We have to show love to all, even when the other side does not want our love. Show them that to be children of God means to love. And when we love, we have to do so unconditionally.

Let us all deepen our faith in God and deepen our understanding of His will. Let us understand further the love He has for us, and let us hope that we mankind may learn to love more, and to devote ourselves truly to God, seeking God in all the things we do, and follow in His ways in all of our actions. May God walk with us and guide us, teach us how to understand His will and show us how to love each other and to love Him. Amen.

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 5 : 38-48

You have heard that it was said : An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you this : do not oppose evil with evil; if someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn and offer the other. If someone sues you in court for your shirt, give him your coat as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give when asked, and do not turn your back on anyone who wants to borrow from you.

You have heard that it was said : Love your neighbour and do not do good to your enemy. But this I tell you : Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in Heaven. For He makes His sun rise on both the wicked and the good, and He gives rain to both the just and the unjust.

If you love those who love you, what is special about that? Do not even tax collectors do as much? And if you are friendly only to your friends, what is so exceptional about that? Do not even the pagans do as much? As for you, be righteous and perfect in the way your heavenly Father is righteous and perfect.

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 3 : 16-23

Do you not know that you are God’s Temple, and that God’s Spirit abides within you? If anyone destroys the Temple of God, God will destroy him. God’s Temple is holy, and you are this Temple.

Do not deceive yourselves. If anyone of you considers himself wise in the ways of the world, let him become a fool, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s eyes. To this, Scripture says : God catches the wise in their own wisdom. It also says : The Lord knows the reasoning of the wise, that it is useless.

Because of this, let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you, Paul, Apollos, Cephas – life, death, the present and the future. Everything is yours, and you, you belong to Christ, and Christ is of God.

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 102 : 1-2, 3-4, 8 and 10, 12-13

Bless the Lord, my soul; all my being, bless His holy Name! Bless the Lord, my soul, and do not forget all His kindness.

He forgives all your sins and heals all your sickness; He redeems your life from destruction and crowns you with love and compassion.

The Lord is gracious and merciful, abounding in love and slow to anger. He does not treat us according to our sins, nor does He punish us as we deserve.

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Sunday, 23 February 2014 : 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Leviticus 19 : 1-2, 17-18

YHVH spoke to Moses and said, “Speak to the entire assembly of the people of Israel and say to them : Be holy for I, YHVH, your God, am holy.

Do not hate your brother in your heart; rebuke your neighbour frankly so as not to share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or nurture a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbour as yourself; I am YHVH.

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Sunday, 16 February 2014 : 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Our Lord is perfect, and He is good in all of His doings and dealings. He came to straighten our path, and make good again our status, that we will be shown the way to true salvation in God. For we mankind over time had grown to be lax, proud, and disobedient. Instead of following what God wants from us, we tend to walk on our own path, and ignore all of His calls towards us.

That was why we veered away from God’s path, and walked towards damnation with the devil. The devil was only very glad that we would come towards him instead of the Lord, and that was why he lured us even more towards himself, that just as he is to suffer, we also will suffer with him. We twist the law of God to suit our own purposes.

That was why Jesus came to straighten things out, to clarify what the Lord truly wanted from each one of us. The Pharisees, the scribes and teachers of the Law had abandoned the true meaning of the law of God, for their own version of the law, twisted with human pride, arrogance and ignorance. They filled the law of God with many corruptions and unnecessary burdens that they piled up on the people.

They hid the law behind layers after layers of unnecessary and burdensome rituals and observations, and they themselves revelled in the glory they have gained and the praise given to them by the people for their supposed piety and observation of the law. They therefore prevented the people of God from realising the true meaning of the law, deceiving the people.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this world did not know Christ and they have rejected Him, even among His own people, and foremost of all those of course were the Pharisees and their parties. This was because there was no God in their hearts. Their hearts were filled with things and pleasures of this world. The world today is no different. The allures and pleasures of this world had corrupted many, and closed their hearts away from God.

These things distract us from God and what He wants from us. As often mentioned, what God wants from us is not blind or meaningless obedience and obeisance. What God wants from us is love and faith. He wants from us devotion and true and unbridled love. That was why He gave us Jesus, as a proof of His love and to teach His love to us.

The Lord Jesus explained that the laws that God had given to mankind should not be taken just at the face value or be taken from granted. The law of God is all about love, just as God Himself is Love. And this love is to love one another as fellow children of God and loving God Himself who is our Father. And it is this truth that Jesus came for, not to destroy or obliterate the old laws revealed to Moses, but to straighten it and clarify the meaning behind it.

Jesus came to perfect the law of God revealed to Moses. He came to erase all the corruptions of the world added over the centuries by the people of God in their ignorance and arrogance, and bring the law once again to its true purpose. Yes, the law of God as I have often mentioned, was not meant to enslave God’s people or to punish them.

Brethren, let us all heed the call of our Lord delivered to us through Jesus, that we should return to His fold, and seeking God and His love rather than our own glory and prestige as the Pharisees had done in the past. Let us focus on loving the Lord and following His ways, making sure that first of all we seek to understand what God wants from each one of us.

Let us dull the edge of our pride and arrogance, and sharpen the edge of our humility. We should seek the wisdom of God and trust in His words rather than in the words of men. Lead a good and pure life, and seek what is good instead of what is wicked in the eyes of the Lord. Do not commit sin as Jesus had said, and avoid any licentiousness and evil.

Be pure and holy just as our Lord is holy. Be good and faithful in His ways and listen to Him when He speaks to us. God spoke to us in the silence of our hearts, but silence is a rare occasion these days. Our world is too noisy with distractions and allure of pleasures and filled with temptations that keep us away from the Lord.

Let us therefore then take the time for God, and spend some time with Him regularly. Seek Him, and ask Him what He desires from us. He wants our love, obedience with clear understanding, and devotion. Time is one of the things we can certainly spend for His sake. If we remain in Him and keep ourselves faithful, we will be strong against whatever temptations of sin or any attempt by the devil to derail us from the path of salvation.

Keep ourselves free from sin, for sin is the gateway to destruction and eternal damnation. Sin prevents us from receiving the grace of God. May our Lord therefore strengthen the faith and love inside of us, that we may resist sin and remain in the favour of God. May He bless us all forever and ever. Amen.

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Sunday, 16 February 2014 : 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 5 : 17-37

Do not think that I have come to annul the Law and the Prophets. I have not come to annul them but to fulfill them. I tell you this : as long as heaven and earth last, not the smallest letter or dot in the Law will change until all is fulfilled.

So then, whoever breaks the least important of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be the least in the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, whoever obeys them, and teaches others to do the same, will be great in the kingdom of heaven.

I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial.

But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial. Whoever insults a brother or sister deserves to be brought before the council. Whoever calls a brother or a sister “Fool!” deserves to be thrown into the fire of hell.

So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with him, and then come back and offer your gift to God.

Do not forget this : be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.

You have heard that it was said : Do not commit adultery. But I tell you this : anyone who looks at a woman too lustfully has in fact already committed adultery with her in his heart. So, if your right eye causes you to sin, pull it out and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell.

If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell.

It was also said : Anyone who divorces his wife, must give her a written notice of divorce. But what I tell you is this : If a man divorces his wife, except in the case of unlawful union, he causes her to commit adultery. And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

You have also heard that people were told in the past : Do not break your oath; and oath sworn to the Lord must be kept. But I tell you this : do not take oaths. Do not swear by the heavens, for they are God’s throne, nor by the earth, because it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King.

Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Say yes when you mean yes, and say no when you mean no. Anything else you say comes from the devil.

 

Alternative Reading (shorter version)

 

Matthew 5 : 20-22a, 27-28, 33-34a, 37

I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.

You have heard that it was said : Do not commit adultery. But I tell you this : anyone who looks at a woman too lustfully has in fact already committed adultery with her in his heart.

You have also heard that people were told in the past : Do not break your oath; and oath sworn to the Lord must be kept. But I tell you this : do not take oaths. Say yes when you mean yes, and say no when you mean no. Anything else you say comes from the devil.