Sundays after Epiphany

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Sunday, 4 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Exodus 34 : 4b-6, 8-9

Then Moses rose early in the morning and went up Mount Sinai as YHVH had commanded, taking in his hands the two slabs of stone. And YHVH came down in a cloud and stood there with him, and Moses called on the Name of YHVH.

Then YHVH passed in front of him and cried out, “YHVH, YHVH is a God full of pity and mercy, slow to anger and abounding in truth and loving-kindness.”

Moses hastened to bow down to the ground and worshipped. He then said, “If You really look kindly on me, my Lord, please come and walk in our midst and even though we are a stiff-necked people, pardon our wickedness and our sin and make us Yours.”

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Saturday, 3 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are called to keep on doing what the Lord has asked and entrusted to all of us to do in our own respective lives, and each one of us who have been given the Wisdom and the blessings of God, His grace and love, we have the obligation and duty to proclaim the truth and Good News of God according to what we have received through His Wisdom and the through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, by which He has strengthened us in faith and knowledge, in courage and strength. As Christians, called to love the Lord and serve Him, and doing the same to our fellow brothers and sisters, each and every one of us should make good use of these gifts God has given us so that our lives may truly be worthy and good for Him and His cause.

In our first reading today, the prophet Sirach in his Book mentioned how as Christians and therefore, the followers and disciples of the Lord, all of us should live our lives and how we should all behave in each and every moments of our lives. All of us should live our lives faithfully and dedicate ourselves thoroughly to the Lord despite the hardships and challenges that we all may have to face. Each and every one of us should always trust in the Lord and allow Him to guide us down the path of righteousness and truth, never wavering even amidst the many challenges and hardships that we may have to endure for being faithful Christians, followers and disciples of the Lord. We may be questioned and challenged by others who disagreed with us, but if we firmly hang on to the truth, we will never falter and not even the greatest trials can overcome our faith in God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the moment after the Lord had cleared the Temple from the wicked and cheating merchants and money changers, who were profiting greatly from overcharging the worshippers and others visitors to the Temple of God in Jerusalem. Thus, the Lord Jesus angrily chased them all out of the Temple and scolded them all for their wicked actions, in turning the Holy House of God into a den of robbers, causing corruption, evil and sin to taint the sanctity of the Place where God Himself was present in this world. The Lord Jesus came to purify the faith, to proclaim to all that what their leaders practiced and all of their rituals and other excesses were distractions that actually caused us to be separated from God and His love and grace.

And as we heard, the Lord immediately faced challenges and opposition, which happened because the Temple authorities, the chief priests and others were concerned with what the Lord had done. They questioned the Lord on the actions He had done, and the authority by which He had done so. But the Lord answered them with great courage and challenged them back on what they said about the baptism of St. John the Baptist and all of his other works. As a context, the same group of Temple authorities, the elders and the Pharisees were also against the works of St. John the Baptist, and questioned the latter exactly in the same manner that they had also questioned the Lord. But they did not dare to publicly challenge the Lord and the works of St. John the Baptist, as these two were very popular among the people, and it would have caused a great uproar should the Temple authorities chose to do so.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of these highlighted to us the kind of hardships and challenges that we as Christians may have to face in the midst of us living our Christian lives faithfully and obediently, just as the Lord Jesus and St. John the Baptist have carried out their respective ministries, and faced often bitter and persistent opposition and challenges from those who refused to believe in them, and in God’s truth and Good News. Instead, they chose to persist in their error and disobedience, thinking that as the custodians of the Law and the leaders of the people of God, they were above the Law and the truth itself, and that they could never go wrong. Their pride, which intermingled with their greed and desires, and fear that their influence and power would wane, should the worshippers and those merchants were to avoid the Temple by the Lord’s actions, made them to oppose the Lord.

We must not give up despite all these challenges and oppositions, and we should persevere and be strong amidst all these obstacles we may have to face, being inspired by the many great examples of our holy predecessors, the great saints and other holy men and women in the past who had laboured well and dedicated their whole lives to the Lord. Each one of us are reminded that we are never walking this journey and all of us are always guided by the Lord through His Wisdom and the Holy Spirit. However, it is often that we become complacent and slack in how we live our lives, taking the easy way out and preferring to conform to the ways of the world, especially to the path of evil, wickedness and sin. This is not the path which we should be taking, as we are reminded that if we follow those path, we will easily drift away from God and His truth, as the chief priests and the Pharisees had done.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Charles Lwanga and his holy companions in martyrdom, collectively known as the Holy Ugandan Martyrs. They all dedicated themselves to the Lord, missionaries, local priests and faithful laymen and laywomen alike, who were persecuted for their faith in God, and remained firmly resolute and committed in their faith in God to the very end, despite the temptations, coercions and threats that they were facing. Back then, St. Charles Lwanga himself was the chief page and an important servant of the King of the Kingdom of Buganda in what is today Uganda. He encountered the Christian faith through the missionaries who proclaimed the Lord and His Good News among the people there in that region. Back then, the King was a great pedophile who preyed on the young pages of the kingdom, and the opposition from Christian missionaries against such practices caused the king to conduct massacres against them.

St. Charles Lwanga himself was convinced of the truth that the Lord had delivered through the Catholic missionaries, the White Fathers who were there, and St. Charles Lwanga along with many others among Buganda’s court members and servants were also baptised together as Christians. St. Charles Lwanga also protected the pages, the young boys under his care from the king’s perverted and wicked actions. It was then that the king and those among his courtiers that had become Christians came to a point of contention, as the former condemned some of them to death, which led to St. Charles Lwanga and the other servants to stand up for their faith publicly, and they were therefore led to be martyred by being burnt alive. At the site where he and others were martyred now stands the great Basilica of the Holy Ugandan Martyrs at Namugongo, where the relics of those faithful martyrs are enshrined. Their fidelity and commitment to God served as great examples and inspirations to all of us Christians in how we ourselves should live up to our Christian calling and mission in our lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect on these words of the Scriptures that we have heard and received, and also on the lives of our holy predecessors, particularly those of the Holy Martyrs of Uganda, in their most courageous defence of their faith and commitment to the Lord’s truth and righteousness. Are we willing and able to commit ourselves in the same way as well, brethren? Are we willing and able to carry our own crosses in life, in following the Lord ever more faithfully in each and every passing moments? Let us all discern our path forward well and carefully so that we may continue to inspire many others to walk in God’s Presence and to be steadfast in our obedience and commitment to Him, despite the many challenges and trials that we may have to face. Let us remember that even our Lord Himself has been rejected and opposed throughout His life and ministry. May the Lord continue to strengthen and bless us in our every works and endeavours, in all the things we do for His greater glory, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 3 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Mark 11 : 27-33

At that time, Jesus and His disciples were once again in Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking in the Temple, the chief priests, the teachers of the Law and the elders came to Him, and asked, “What authority do You have to act like this? Who gave You authority to do the things You do.”

Jesus said to them, “I will ask you a question, only one, and if you give me an answer, then I will tell you what authority I have to act like this. Was John’s preaching and baptism a work of God, or was it merely something human? Answer Me.”

And they kept arguing among themselves, “If we answer that it was a work of God, He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’” But neither could they answer before the people that the baptism of John was merely something human, for everyone regarded John as a prophet. So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you what authority I have to act as I do.”

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Saturday, 3 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 18 : 8, 9, 10, 11

The Law of the Lord is perfect : it gives life to the soul. The word of the Lord is trustworthy : it gives wisdom to the simple.

The precepts of the Lord are right : they give joy to the heart. The commandments of the Lord are clear : they enlighten the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is pure, it endures forever; the judgments of the Lord are true, all of them just and right.

They are more precious than gold – pure gold of a jeweller; they are much sweeter than honey which drops from the honeycomb.

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Saturday, 3 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Sirach 51 : 12-20

I will give You thanks and praise and bless the Name of the Lord. In my youth, before I set out on my travels, I openly sought wisdom in prayer; before the Temple I asked for her and I will pursue her to the end of my days. While she blossomed like a ripening cluster, my heart was delighted in her; my feet followed the right path, because from my youth I searched for her.

As soon as I began listening to her, she was given to me, and with her, much instruction. With her help I made progress and I will glorify Him Who gives me wisdom, for I decided to put it into practice and ardently seek what is good. I shall not regret it. My soul has struggled to possess her. I have been attentive to observe the Law, and after my faults I have stretched out my hands to heaven and lamented my ignorance of her.

My love for her increased and I found her in repentance. It was through her from the beginning that I learnt to possess my heart. She will not forsake me.

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Friday, 2 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Marcellinus and St. Peter, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, each one of us are called and reminded to be truly faithful and committed to God, not to forget our obligations and calling to do what He has willed and commanded us to do. All of us as Christians have responded to God’s call and have been chosen as His own beloved ones, as those whom He will bless and guide throughout our lives, by the protection and strength that He would provide for us through His Presence and the Holy Spirit. We must always bear rich fruits of our faith and the Holy Spirit, by doing whatever we can to be exemplary in our way of life and actions, by living our lives earnestly and most faithfully in the manner that the Lord has taught and commanded us all to do.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Sirach in which the prophet Sirach spoke of how people who were wicked and who did not do good things were quickly forgotten or shunned. This is indeed true as those who committed crimes and wicked things, or those who have been selfish in their lives may indeed have good and pleasurable lives, but they would be remembered with infamy and hated by everyone who came after them. Is that what we want to be remembered as, brothers and sisters in Christ? The prophet Sirach also mentioned how those who did not do anything good or evil, were also easily forgotten and not remembered, because they simply had not done anything good and memorable at all, or as mentioned, in doing things that are wicked and unjust.

On the contrary, the prophet Sirach highlighted how those who have done good and obeyed the Lord’s will and commandments, and those who have been living righteously, if they are remembered, their memories will be great and wonderful, and will inspire many generations afterwards. People will emulate them based on their good actions, words and deeds, and their lives and virtues will be extolled by many of those who may be touched by their great examples and lives. We have seen this in the many people and all those whom the world called as heroes and heroines, and in our Church itself, we have those that the Church had declared to be worthy and righteous, just and inspirational, as the saints and blesseds, whose memories we honour and celebrate every year, in memory of all the good things that they had done.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the account of the Lord Who encountered a fig tree that was barren and did not lay any fruits at all, and the Lord cursed the fig tree, before then clearing the Temple of Jerusalem from all the merchants and money changers carrying out their businesses and works at the courtyard of the Temple and House of God. The Lord chased off all those dishonest people who were notorious for having cheated on all the worshippers and other visitors to the Temple in doing their business, overcharging their customers and getting lots of profits for their services with the tacit approval of the Temple’s chief priests and authorities. These are things that the Lord despised, for all of the wickedness that those people had committed, and hence, He drove all of them out of the House of His Heavenly Father, and told everyone not to make His Father’s House as a den of robbers.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore through what we have heard in our Scripture passages today, all of us are reminded that each and every one of us should get rid from ourselves the darkness and corruptions of sin and evil, and all the things which have often kept us away from the fullness of God’s grace and love. And just as the prophet Sirach had reminded us and as the Lord had done, in driving all of those unscrupulous and cheating merchants away from God’s House, thus, each and every one of us are called to purify ourselves, our hearts, minds and our whole entire beings from the corruptions of sin and from all the wickedness and temptations of the evils of this world. Each and every one of us should make the conscious efforts and the works needed for us to remain true in our faith and in doing what the Lord Himself has taught and told us to do in our lives.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of two great saints whose lives, actions and dedication to God hopefully can inspire each one of us to be faithful to the Lord in the similar manner as well. St. Marcellinus and St. Peter were faithful Christians who were persecuted for their faith, and they were, according to the Christian traditions, either priests or ministers of the faith, with St. Marcellinus reputedly being a priest and St. Peter was an exorcist, who were arrested and tortured during one of the most brutal episodes of Christian persecutions under the Roman Emperor Diocletian. According to the same traditions, the two saints gladly faced martyrdom and prepared the site where they were then beheaded and buried, in a place that was purposefully kept hidden so that they could not be venerated by the other Christians later on.

Nonetheless, according to Church traditions, the Lord inspired two women, named Lucilla and Firmina to discover the martyrdom and burial site of the two great martyrs, and they were properly buried, becoming great inspiration for many other Christians of the later era, right up to our time. The tale of their courageous and unwavering faith amidst the intense trials, hardships and challenges that they had to face as servants and followers of the Lord would inspire countless people of God throughout the subsequent years, decades and centuries, and being commemorated even in the Roman Canon amongst the few martyrs listed there highlighted just how influential both St. Marcellinus and St. Peter had been in the history of the Church throughout the ages. Their lives and examples should therefore also serve as inspirations and examples for us all as well.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, our Saviour and King continue to help and guide us throughout our journey, and may the inspiration and good examples showed by His great servants, the martyr saints, St. Marcellinus and St. Peter continue to lead us down the path of faith and righteousness, Christian virtues and dedication so that we may grow ever closer in our relationship with God and in our faith in Him. May our own actions, words and deeds, our every good works and interactions be filled with true Christian faith and way of life, and may we glorify the Lord in each and every moments of our lives. May God bless us all in everything we do, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Friday, 2 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Marcellinus and St. Peter, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Mark 11 : 11-26

At that time, Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple. And after He had looked all around, as it was already late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve. The next day, when they were leaving Bethany, He felt hungry. In the distance, He noticed a fig tree covered with leaves; so He went to see if He could find anything on it.

When He reached it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. Then Jesus said to the fig tree, “May no one ever eat your fruit!” And His disciples heard these words. When they reached Jerusalem, Jesus went to the Temple, and began to drive away all the people He saw buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the stools of those who sold pigeons. And He would not let anyone carry anything through the Temple area.

Jesus then taught the people, “Does not God say in the Scriptures : My House will be called a House of Prayer for all the nations? But you have turned it into a den of thieves.”

The chief priests and the teachers of the Law heard of this, and they tried to find a way to destroy Him. They were afraid of Him, because all the people were astonished by His teaching. When evening came, Jesus left the city.

Early next morning, as they walked along the road, the disciples saw the fig tree withered to its roots. Peter then said to Him, “Master, look! The fig tree You cursed has withered.” And Jesus replied, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and have no doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will happen, it will be done for you.”

“Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it shall be done for you. And when you stand to pray, if you have anything against anyone, forgive.”

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Friday, 2 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Marcellinus and St. Peter, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Psalm 149 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song, sing His praise in the assembly of His saints! Let Israel rejoice in his Maker, let the people of Zion glory in their King!

Let them dance to praise of His Name and make music for Him with harp and timbrel. For the Lord delights in His people; He crowns the lowly with victory.

The saints will exult in triumph; even at night on their couches. Let the praise of God be on their lips; this is the glory of all His saints. Alleluia!

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Friday, 2 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Marcellinus and St. Peter, Martyrs (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Sirach 44 : 1, 9-13

Let us now glorify illustrious men, the ancestors of our people. Others are not remembered and have disappeared as if they never existed. It is the same for their children. But now consider the godly men whose good deeds have not been forgotten.

Those who came after them benefitted from the rich legacy they left; their race remained faithful to the Covenant, their children followed their example. Their family will endure forever and never will its glory be tarnished.

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Thursday, 1 June 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Justin, Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are called to remember the Lord and everything that He has done for our sake, that despite all which we have done to spite and anger Him, because of our disobedience, stubbornness and sins, but God still loves us all and still patiently called on all of us to follow Him, and to turn away from all those evils and wickedness, so that we may be renewed and reconciled with Him, and no longer separated from Him due to our sins and evils. That is why today all of us are reminded again to put our trust in the Lord and believe in Him as in Him alone we shall have true satisfaction and joy, and He will provide for us what we need in life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Sirach in which the prophet Sirach mentioned of the great works of the Lord which were truly wonderful, and everything happened in this universe precisely because the Lord has willed it all to be. Nothing happened without the Lord’s approval and without being aligned to His will. He knows all that we need and He will always be by our side, providing for us and guiding us through the path that we are walking through in this life. He leads us down the right path, and whenever we err and disobey Him, choosing to walk our own path and end up in misfortune and sufferings, He chastises and disciplines us, but He does so not out of Him despising us, rather from a sincere desire to help us and to lead us back to Himself. He never despised us but rather He despised the sins which we have committed.

And all of us have to realise that it is through God and with God alone that we can fully and completely overcome the many allures and temptations of sin, and all the things that have kept us enslaved to the power of sin, evil and death, just as what we have heard in our Gospel passage today have reminded us yet again about this fact. There we heard of the Lord Jesus healing the sight of a blind man named Bartimaeus, who begged Him to heal his sight, calling upon Him, ‘Son of David, Jesus, have mercy upon me!’ again and again. Through that act, the blind man Bartimaeus has shown that his faith and trust in the Lord was truly great, and endured even amidst all the ridicule he was facing and the efforts by those who tried to silence him and stop him from seeking help from the Lord. He kept on trying regardless, and kept on seeking the Lord.

It was this great faith which moved the Lord to act on Bartimaeus, healing him from his blindness and ailment, allowing him to finally see again, and to be whole again. By the grace and love of God, and by His will, Bartimaeus was able to see, and this was something that was considered impossible, and even in our modern day, with all the technological advances in medicine and other things, there are many things that are impossible for us to do, without God’s will and guidance. By faith, Bartimaeus and many others have been touched and healed by the Lord Himself, and also through His Apostles and successors, throughout the history of the Church. This reminds us all that as long as we entrust ourselves in the Lord and in His Providence, we shall never be disappointed, and we shall always be blessed and strengthened by His love and grace.

Now, all of us should be inspired by the examples of faith shown by Bartimaeus, and heed the reminders told unto us by the prophet Sirach, so that we may continue to uphold the faith we ought to have in the Lord Jesus Christ, in His love and power to heal us and to save us. Each and every one of us as Christians are all called to follow the Lord wholeheartedly and to be filled with faith and devotion to Him. We should love Him wholeheartedly and continue to walk in His path, following what He has guided us into, and be encouraged and reassured that He will always be by our side, guiding and empowering us throughout the way. Nothing can separate us from the love of God, and unless we ourselves have consistently and repeatedly rejected Him and His love, all these are always available to us right up to the end of our lives.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Justin, a great saint and man of God and a holy martyr of the Church and the Christian faith. St. Justin is a great example for all of us in how he completely dedicated his life to the service of God and in his persistence in enduring all the challenges and persecutions he faced, even right up to the moment of his martyrdom, always full of faith and commitment to God. St. Justin was a Greek man who converted to the Christian faith when he encountered an old man, who was likely a Syrian Christian by the seashore, and engaged with him in a dialogue about God, convincing him that the faith in God, His prophets and messengers are far better and superior than engaging in the wisdom and debates of the philosophers, as St. Justin was searching for the meaning of life and truth back then.

Afterwards, St. Justin dedicated himself wholly to the pursuit of the Good News, convinced fully of the message of the truth which Christ Our Lord has brought unto us, and which the Lord has revealed to us with His coming, and through the Holy Spirit that has been sent unto us all. St. Justin proclaimed the Lord henceforth, all of His truth and Good News, and began teaching as a Christian philosopher, gathering quite a number of people who were convinced by what he has been preaching about the Lord, with great wisdom and zeal. St. Justin and some of his students, according to Church traditions, were persecuted and martyred by the Roman authorities during one of the episodes of the persecution of Christians. He remained firm and resolute in his faith right up to the very end, inspiring countless generations of Christians afterwards.

May the Lord continue to guide each and every one of us, and may He empower all of us to live ever more graciously and with greater commitment in His Presence, according to His will, and be inspired by the great examples of our holy predecessors, His great servants, like St. Justin and many others. May He bless our works and efforts, and all of our endeavours for His greater glory, now and always. Amen.