Sunday

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Sunday, 27 October 2013 : 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Timothy 4 : 6-8, 16-18

As for me, I am already poured out as a libation, and the moment of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness with which the Lord, the just Judge, will reward me on that day; and not only me, but all those who have longed for His glorious coming.

At my first hearing in court no one supported me; all deserted me. May the Lord not hold it against them. But the Lord was at my side, giving me strength to proclaim the Word fully, and let all the pagans hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will save me from all evil, bringing me to His heavenly kingdom. Glory to Him forever and ever. Amen!

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Sunday, 27 October 2013 : 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 33 : 2-3, 17-18, 19 and 23

I will bless the Lord all my days; His praise will be ever on my lips. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the lowly hear and rejoice.

But His face is set against the wicked to destroy their memory from the earth. The Lord hears the cry of the righteous and rescues them from all their troubles.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves the distraught. But the Lord will redeem the life of His servants; none of those who trust in Him will be doomed.

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Sunday, 27 October 2013 : 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach 35 : 12-14, 16-19

The Lord is judge and shows no partiality. He will not disadvantage the poor, He who hears the prayer of the oppressed. He does not disdain the plea of the orphan, nor the complaint of the widow.

The one who serves God wholeheartedly will be heard; his petition will reach the clouds. The prayer of the humble person pierces the clouds, and he is not consoled until he has been heard. His prayer will not cease until the Most High has looked down, until justice has been done in favour of the righteous.

And the Lord will not delay, nor will He be patient with the wicked.

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Sunday, 20 October 2013 : 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (Scripture Reflection)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the Lord is our guardian, and He is our fortress. He will cover us with the power of His wings. He will not let harm to come upon us, and we will not know suffering or pain. All these, if we remain righteous and stay true on His ways, and do not stray into the path of evil. The Lord will listen to our call and our needs, because He loves us so much, that He certainly cannot ignore the suffering of His children.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, we have in fact no need at all to fear about ourselves, or about our wellbeing and safety. That is because the Lord our God, as the readings today assert, is a great and loving God, and He will stand by us at all times, especially when we are in our most difficult times. God does not wish to see His children suffering, be it temporal or eternal, as how it is in hell for those who did not repent their sinful ways.

The Lord had protected all of His beloved all this time, and today we heard now the Lord gave the people of Israel a complete victory against those who opposed them, namely the vicious and pagan Amalekites. The Lord fought with His people and triumphed against the forces of evil arrayed against them, no matter how powerful they were. Thus God loved and provided for His children throughout generations, one after another.

Yet, the people of God were not faithful, and as fast as the Lord had made them a great nation, blessed in terms of all things imaginable, they too forgot about the Lord and all of His might and love for them. They began to sin again and hurt the Lord with the depth of their sinfulness and transgressions. This is what the Lord wanted us to emulate.

Today, brethren, the Lord reminds us and highlights the nature of our salvation, in Jesus. He promised to all of us, life eternal in God. We are preoccupied with our own lives and our joy in this world, that we fail to see the great role that God had played in the lives of each and every one of us. We often demand many things from God and want Him to immediately answer our prayers and our demands, as unreasonable as they are.

To us has been revealed the full nature of God’s saving power, the love that God had for us, and yet many of us still have little faith in God. It is very often that we trust more of our own strengths and material possessions rather than trusting in God and in His divine providence. That was why when He indeed came into this world in Jesus Christ, He was disappointed at how little faith mankind had for Him, especially that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, who, out of all people, should have had the greatest faith.

That is because those people had a high sense of pride and self-righteousness. They may be seen as pious and holy externally, through their actions and devotions, but inside, they had no real and true love for the Lord, and that was what the Lord rebuked them for, for their false uprightness and righteousness. They were truly wicked and yet tried hard to justify themselves.

It is not that we cannot devote ourselves the way they had done, brothers and sisters, that is through prayers and dedications, and sacrifices. They are important, and indeed we are expected to keep a good and healthy prayer life at all times. What is important, however, is that we must keep the Lord at the centre of our lives, and we must uphold the love He has and He preached to all of us, at all times.

We cannot become empty Christians, by merely saying prayers and devotions without meaning, by attending the Mass without participation and understanding.  Then, we cannot be charitable and loving without first anchoring ourselves in the Lord first. This then shows that, in all the things we say, in all the things we do, and in all the things we believe in, we must always have the Lord and His love at the centre of them all.

Brethren, let us therefore, seek the Lord, with all our heart, with all of our strength and understanding, that we will be able to find Him despite the devil’s temptations and all the distractions provided by the world. Let us open wide our hearts, to allow God to enter us, and transform us with His love. What we need is indeed simply to ask for the Lord and His assistance, and He will definitely provide for us in His own way.

All we need is indeed to ask, and if what we need are what we truly need, the Lord will grant it to us. He is after all just, just as He is loving. The problem is indeed often with us, because too often we are so engaged in our own pride and sense of ‘greatness’, that we ourselves turn away the Lord’s offers to us, trusting more in ourselves and our ‘power’. We judge ourselves better than others, and in there lies our fall. In the same way indeed, as how Satan fell from grace, that is because of his irreconcilable pride in himself.

Therefore, beloved brethren, from today on, let us first doubt no longer the love and dedication that God has for all of us. His care for us is genuine, and He wants us to be with Him again, and that is why, He often knocked at our door, the door of our hearts. Yet often, He knocked, only to be turned away.  We are too immersed and engaged in our pride and worldly desires, that we ignore the calling of the Lord, who whispered softly within our hearts.

Let us hence, commit to deepen our understanding of the faith we have, and resolve to bring ourselves ever closer to God through prayer. May we be able to pray, speak to God, and allow His gentle words to enter into our hearts. That we will become more and more loving children of our God, and be blessed forevermore. God bless and protect us always. Amen!

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Sunday, 20 October 2013 : 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 18 : 1-8

Jesus told them a parable, to show them that they should pray continually, and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain town there was a judge, who neither feared God nor people. In the same town there was a widow, who kept coming to him, saying, “Defend my rights against my opponent!”

For a time he refused, but finally he thought, “Even though I neither fear God nor care about people, this widow bothers me so much, I will see that she gets justice; then she will stop coming and wearing me out.”

And Jesus said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Will God not do justice for His chosen ones, who cry to Him day and night, even if He delays in answering them? I tell you, He will speedily do them justice. But, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”

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Sunday, 20 October 2013 : 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Timothy 3 : 14 – 2 Timothy 4 : 2

As for you, continue with what you have learnt and what has been entrusted to you, knowing from whom you received it. Besides, you have known the Scriptures from childhood; they will give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, refuting error, for correcting and training in Christian life. Though Scripture the man of God is made expert and thoroughly equipped for every good work.

In the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by the hope I have of His coming and His kingdom, I urge you to preach the Word, in season and out of season, reproving, rebuking or advising, always with patience and providing instruction.

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Sunday, 20 October 2013 : 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 120 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

I lift up my eyes to the mountains – from where shall come my help? My help comes from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.

Will He let your foot slip, the One watching over you? Will He slumber? No, the guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.

The Lord is your guardian, the Lord is at your side and you in His shade; Sunstroke will not be for you by day, nor the spell of the moon by night.

The Lord guards you from every evil; He will protect your life. The Lord watches over your coming and going both now and forever.

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Sunday, 20 October 2013 : 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Exodus 17 : 8-13

When the Israelites were at Rephidim, the Amalekites came and attacked them. So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some on our men and go out to fight the Amalakites in the morning. As for me, I will stand with God’s staff in my hand at the top of the hill.”

Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had directed, while Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. It happened that when Moses raised his hands, the Israelites would win but when he lowered them, the Amalekites would have the advantage.

As Moses’ arms grew weary they placed a stone for him to sit on while Aaron and Hur on either side held up his arms which remained steadily raised until sunset. For his part Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the sword.

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Sunday, 13 October 2013 : 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Thanksgiving, especially giving thanks on what is due for us to give thanks for, is what is truly lacking in many of us. We do not give thanks to those who had done good things for us. Worse still, we often seek glory for ourselves, even for things that we do not do on our own, claiming honour and glory for ourselves, even of it is not rightful for us to do so.

That is the essence of the readings that we listened to today, brethren in Christ. A thanksgiving for the Lord who had shown us His care and love, and His dedication, one which we often overlook or simply forget, in the joy of the moment, after we had received the goodness of God.

The readings highlighted one of our major shortcomings throughout life, that is to forget the role of God in our lives, and to overlook Him and His role in favour of our own achievements and glory. That is what happened to the lepers who were healed from their afflictions, which out of ten, only one returned to the Lord to give Him thanks for His mercy and love.

We contrast this to the behaviour of Naaman, the Syrian, and one of the leper who is a Samaritan, who showed their affection to those who had done good unto them, thanking them sincerely on the love shown to them. They have done what is right in the eyes of the Lord, and therefore were made righteous.

Why use the example of a Syrian and a Samaritan? Firstly, I want to highlight the importance of understanding the true desire of the Lord in promoting the right attitude and mindset to His people. He did not intend the examples to highlight the differences between the people of Israel and the ‘pagan’ peoples around them.

Why so? That is because, the people of Israel, having been chosen as the people of God through the covenant God had renewed with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants, they have always thought of themselves to be special. That they are always the good ones, the upright, and the ones ensured salvation as their birthright.

They have always looked at the pagans in disgust and contempt, considering them damned and evil, while in fact, as we all know, as written throughout the Old Testament and even the New, as they had rebelled against God, tested Him, doubted Him, and even abandoned Him for other gods, the golden calf, and the false gods of the people of Canaan who lived around them. They had done what is wicked in the eyes of God and did not repent, but grew to be ever worse and deeper in their wickedness

Thus, in line with their stubbornness and God’s love for all mankind, without exception, He had sent Jesus His Son, to reveal the true nature of His love for all. He wanted to show Israel their wickedness and the need for them to repent, as well as for them to realise that being the first chosen people of God does not give them an excuse for their sinfulness, and that they in fact, should welcome all mankind as fellow brothers and sisters in God.

It is important for us to be warm and welcoming, as well as open to others around us, not to be quick to judge and condemn us, but instead seek on what is good within us, and embrace one another with love. That, is what the Lord truly desires from us, not our length prayers of the mouth, nor our empty obedience, but the love and commitment from our heart, for the sake of one another, and for God Himself.

Jesus our Lord, the Son of God had been sent into this world that through Him we may gain healing and new life, that we abandon the darkness of evil and this world, for the light of Jesus who is the light of the world, healing us from our afflictions that are sins and wickedness of the evil one. He had been sent to heal us from the sickness that engulf us, be it physically or spiritually, just as He healed the ten lepers who came to Him for healing and mercy.

That is why, I have to reiterate again of the importance of thanksgiving and gratitude, for there is no greater thing that we have ever observed in the history of creation, other than the ultimate sacrifice Christ had went through for us, for our sake, that we will not die an eternal death but live a life eternal, and live through not an eternal punishment but an eternal joy with God.

We have to beware of this leprosy, the true leprosy of the soul, that is our pride, arrogance and lack of gratitude for the Lord and His love and instead trusting our own feeble human power. We tend to think good of ourselves and do not give thanks and glory to God. We are often ignorant of the love that God has shown to all of us, not least of which, in the giving of Himself through Jesus Christ His Son, He had made us all whole and worthy once again, rescued from hell and given the promise of eternal life, as long as we remain faithful and true to His ways.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us commit ourselves to cast far, far away this leprosy, the sickness of our soul, away from us, that we cast away the evils and sins from ourselves, purifying our heart, body, and soul in the light of Christ, the light that cast away all the illusions of Satan, the impurities and corruptions of this world, and made ourselves whole and pure again in God.

Today, Pope Francis, the Vicar of Christ on this world, will consecrate this world, the entire world, to the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in our Lady of Fatima, the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Mother of God, through whom Jesus Christ our Lord is born into this world. And therefore, just as she had cared and loved her Son Jesus with all of her heart and all of her love, she too will from now on take care and love our world and all those who live in it, that is all of us, brothers and sisters, all mankind as one.

This world, brothers and sisters, is in great darkness, under the power of evil and Satan, where brothers hurt brothers, where sisters slander sisters, and where mankind slay one another in hatred. It is where violence and injustice are the common order of the day. It is where mankind dwells in their pride, and disobeys God’s commandments and spurns His love on daily basis. It is the perfect example of leprosy of the soul that I have mentioned earlier on.

That is why, through entrusting this world to the care and intercession of Mary, the Mother of our Lord Jesus, we hope that this world can become a better world, and be healed of this sickness, the leprosy of sin and evil that had infected us all for way too long. It is time for us all, with the help and assistance of Mary, the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, and through her, with the power and might of God Himself, to break free entirely from the chains of slavery that had bound us for all these times.

May the Lord our loving and merciful God look away from the sins we had committed, and as we approach His throne of love and mercy, may He welcome us back into His embrace, and bless us with His eternal love and grace. May Mary, His Mother also continue to pray for us and care for us in the same way that she had shown Jesus her love, while He was on earth. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 13 October 2013 : 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 17 : 11-19

On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus passed through Samaria and Galilee, and, as He entered a village, ten lepers came to meet Him. Keeping their distance, they called to Him, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” Jesus said to them, “Go, and show yourselves to the priests.” Then, as they went on their way, they found they were cured.

One of them, as soon as he saw that he was cleansed, turned back, praising God in a loud voice; and throwing himself on his face before Jesus, he gave Him thanks. This man was a Samaritan.

Then Jesus asked him, “Were not all ten healed? Where are the other nine? Did none of them decide to return and give praise to God, but this foreigner?” And Jesus said to him, “Stand up and go your way; your faith has saved you.”