Sundays of Ordinary Time

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Sunday, 18 June 2023 : Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, all of us are called and reminded to be ever faithful to the Lord and to remember everything that He had done for us, in all the blessings and wonders that we have received. Each and every one of us have become partakers of the Covenant that God has established with us. God has loved and cared for us all most wonderfully and He has called on all of us to follow Him and to do His will. All of us are reminded to live our lives and to do our best to reflect the great love and the examples which our Lord Himself has shown us through His most beloved Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. That is what we are being reminded of this Sunday as we all gather together as one community and one Church of God.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard of the account of the time when the people of Israel, which God had just brought out from the land of Egypt, were led to the Mountain of God, Mount Sinai, where God would establish and renew the Covenant that He has made with their forefathers. The Lord told them and reminded them of everything He had done for their sake. He then told them of what they would all be expected to do as part of the Covenant which He would make with them, to be His holy people who live in accordance to His Law and commandments. The Lord would bless them and protect them, and would grant them His grace and love. God gave them all His Law and commandments so that all of then would know how they ought to live their lives, walking in His path and becoming good role models and sources of inspiration for all others around them.

In our second reading today, we then heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans in which we listened to the Apostle’s reminder to all the faithful in the Church of Rome, and also to all of us, just how fortunate each and every one of us are because God has loved us and provided for us, and even gave us all His most beloved Son, to be our Saviour. St. Paul reminded the faithful people of God that God has sent us His Son, to suffer and die for us, even though we were still rebellious and were great sinners, calling upon us to turn away from those sins and wickedness, having been reconciled through the love of God shown to us in Jesus Christ, the Son of God made Man. All of us are truly fortunate that God has come into our midst, ever always caring about us and kind towards us, and patient with us despite our frequent disobedience and stubbornness.

Lastly, then in our Gospel passage today we heard of the Lord telling His disciples that while the harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few in number, and He mentioned of asking the Master of the harvest to send labourers to gather the harvest. This, which is followed then by the mention of the Twelve Apostles, the closest confidants of the Lord, who were identified by name, and how it was mentioned that they were sent by the Lord with the power and authority to perform miracles and signs in His Name, all these clearly identified to us, that as those whom God had called and chosen, all of us as Christians ought to go forth and proclaim the truth of the Lord, His Good News and His path to all those around us, so that by our actions and good examples, we may inspire more and more people to come to the path towards the Lord and His salvation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having listened to those words of the Scriptures and reflected on them, this is where we should realise that as Christians, each and every one of us have important obligations in life to do what God has commanded and taught us to do. The Lord has taught and revealed to us His Law and commandments, and each one of us ought to know them well, doing what we can as God’s people, as His followers, to inspire others around us and to show the teachings and truths of the Lord to those who have not known Him yet. Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, the works that the Lord has entrusted to His Church, to all of us are still far from complete, as there are still many out there who are still ignorant and lacking in proper understanding and knowledge of what the Lord has revealed and brought into this world.

Not only that, but even within the Church, there are many of those who are lukewarm in their faith, all those who have not lived their lives in accordance to God’s Law and commandments. The Lord wants us all to be the good role models, examples and inspirations for all these around us, even those within the Church so that more and more people may come to be truly faithful to the Lord. And we must realise that the best way for us to evangelise and to proclaim the Lord’s truth, is not by mere words alone. Instead, we have to live our lives genuinely as Christians, so that in everything we say and do, and in how we interact with one another, we truly proclaim the Lord to all those who see us, hear us, interact with us and encounter us. All of us should be great witnesses and missionaries of Christ, in living up to our Christian faith and expectations.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, lest we forget, let us remember everything that the Lord had done for us, in all the things He had done to His beloved people, in patiently caring for them and guiding them, rescuing them from trouble and hardships even when those same people had constantly betrayed and abandoned Him, stubbornly refusing to follow His ways and the path that He has shown them. The Lord has always loved us regardless of all those things, and He kept on reaching out to us, chastising us and punishing us whenever we erred and disobeyed Him, with the intention that we may change our way of life and turn away from all the wicked things which had led us away from the Lord and His salvation, His holiness and love. That is why, each and every one of us, ever reminded of God’s most generous love, should also love Him in the same way, and commit ourselves to Him and the missions which He has entrusted to us.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Master, our King, continue to love us and provide for us, in all the moments of our lives. And may all of us continue to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to Him, that in our every moments, our every actions and interactions, we will be ever worthy and be the faithful bearers of God’s Good News and truth. Let our actions be inspirational and help others to come closer to God, and not cause scandal or make people to distance themselves to the Lord and His Church instead. May God bless us all and our every good efforts and endeavours, in all things, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 18 June 2023 : Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 9 : 36 – Matthew 10 : 8

At that time, when Jesus saw the crowds, He was moved with pity; for they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are only few. Ask the master of the harvest to send workers to gather his harvest.”

Jesus called His Twelve disciples to Him, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to drive them out, and to heal every disease and sickness.

These are the names of the Twelve Apostles : first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew, the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon, the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, the man who would betray Him.

Jesus sent these Twelve on mission, with the instruction : “Do not visit pagan territory and do not enter a Samaritan town. Go, instead, to the lost sheep of the people of Israel. Go, and proclaim this message : The kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. Freely have you received, freely give.”

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Sunday, 18 June 2023 : Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 5 : 6-11

Consider, moreover, the time that Christ died for us : when we were still helpless and unable to do anything. Few would accept to die for an upright person; although, for a very good person, perhaps someone would dare to die.

But see how God manifested His love for us : while we were still sinners, Christ died for us; and we have become just, through His Blood. With much more reason now He will save us from any condemnation. Once enemies, we have been reconciled with God through the death of His Son; with much more reason, now we may be saved, through His life.

Not only that, but we even boast in God because of Christ Jesus, our Lord, through Whom we have been reconciled.

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Sunday, 18 June 2023 : Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 99 : 1-2, 3, 5

All you lands, acclaim YHVH! Serve YHVH with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.

Know that YHVH is God; He created us, and we are His people, the sheep of His fold.

For YHVH is good; His love lasts forever; and His faithfulness, through all generations.

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Sunday, 18 June 2023 : Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Exodus 19 : 2-6a

The Israelites arrived there coming from Rephidim and camped in the wilderness of Sinai.

They camped there in front of the mountain, but Moses went up to God and YHVH called to him from the mountain, saying, “This is what you are to say and to explain to the Israelites : You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagle’s wings and brought you to myself.”

“Now if you listen to Me and keep My Covenant, you shall be My very own possession among all the nations. For all the earth is Mine, but you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

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Saturday, 17 June 2023 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, on the day right after the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. That is why while Fridays and especially First Fridays are often associated with the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Saturdays, and also especially First Saturdays are associated with the Blessed Mother of God, and when votive Masses of Our Lady, Mary, the Mother of God can be celebrated. On this day we remember the great love that Mary has for her Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, reflecting that perfect love which His Son has shown us all through His Most Sacred Heart, ever filled with generous and overflowing, ever-patient love for each and every one of us, His beloved people in this world.

In Mary, the most holy and immaculate Mother of God, having been conceived without sin, as the Church believes in the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception, therefore is found a heart that is truly holy and immaculate, a reflection of the perfection and the perfect love that her own Son has for us. This is what the Immaculate Heart of Mary is all about, that is a Heart filled with great love for God, first and foremost, for her Son, Whom she loved above all else in this world, and lastly, a Heart most Immaculate that is also filled with love for each and every one of us as Christians, and all others whom the Lord has entrusted to her to be her own adopted children. Therefore, just as the Lord has loved us so much and so generously, thus, our most loving Mother has also lovingly cared for us and showed her compassionate nature, from her Immaculate Heart.

As we heard in our Gospel passage today, Mary liked to keep everything in her Immaculate Heart, a Heart that is centred and focused on God alone. In that passage, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus in His young age of twelve, was with His mother and foster father St. Joseph in the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, in which He stayed behind discreetly at the Temple of Jerusalem, the House of God, His Father’s House. We heard how Mary and St. Joseph came to look for the young Lord Jesus and found Him in great discussion with the teachers of the Law who were all astounded by His great wisdom and knowledge, the graces He had and the words of eloquence that He was speaking with. The Lord obeyed His mother and foster father when they brought Him back to their hometown of Nazareth, but as mentioned, Mary kept everything she experienced in her Immaculate Heart.

This is the same Heart that the prophet Simeon had prophesied at the moment when the Baby Jesus was brought to be presented at the Temple, as the Heart that would be pierced with swords of sorrow, a prefigurement and premonition of what would happen at the moment of the Lord’s Passion. For it was then that Mary herself had to witness the most grievous and painful sufferings endured by her Son, as He was betrayed, condemned to death, bearing His heavy Cross all the way to Calvary, as she was following and watching throughout the whole journey. This is the same Immaculate Heart that was indeed wounded at the sight of her persecuted Son, just as the Son’s Most Sacred Heart had also been pierced and wounded by our every sins and transgressions, our wickedness and evils.

That is why Mary has always set her sights upon us, her beloved children, ever showing us her care and compassion, in patiently guiding all of us towards her Son and to be saved in Him. That is why Mary has appeared many times to us throughout history, in her many Apparitions, both those that are well-known ones and the more obscure ones. That is because Mary in her Immaculate Heart loves her Son and through Him, she has also loved us much like she has loved her Son. Mary has never given up on us just as her own Son has not given up on us. She does not want any one of us to be forever lost to God because of our continued evil and wicked ways, our many sins and transgressions through which we have been made separated and sundered from God and His grace. Mary, His mother through her Immaculate Heart, has constantly reached out to us lovingly, in leading us back to her Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

Now, on this day as we reflect upon the most loving and Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Mother of God and Our Saviour, let us all reflect upon the love which Mary has constantly and tirelessly shown us all, and her love for God, obedience for His commands and ways, that all of us as Christians have been called to emulate in our own lives. Let us ask ourselves if we have truly been genuine in our faith and obedience to God, and if we have done what the Lord has called and commanded us to do, in doing God’s will and in walking the path that He has shown us. If we have not done all these in our lives, then let us all commit ourselves anew to His path, reflecting upon our way of life and discerning of what each and every one of us can do in order to fulfil the Law and commandments of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore redirect our lives and focus, our attention and return towards the Lord with renewed zeal in life. All of us have been called and entrusted with the mission to proclaim the Good News, the Gospels of salvation, to call on the people all around us to come to the holy presence of God and to discover His truth, grace and love. All of us have been called to embrace the love of God which He has generously shown us, and which He has also shown us through His mother as well, as through Mary, many of our predecessors before us have been called and reminded to find our way to the Lord, and not few changed their hearts and way of life, abandoning the path of sin and evil thanks to the assistance and intercession from Mary, Our Lady of the Immaculate Heart.

May the Lord, through His blessed Mother Mary, the Lady of the Immaculate Heart, continue to show us His love and compassionate kindness. May He empower each one of us so that we may truly be ever committed and dedicated to His path. Holy Mary, Mother of God, who has loved us most dearly through your Immaculate Heart, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

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Saturday, 17 June 2023 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 2 : 41-51

Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover, as was customary. And when Jesus was twelve years old, He went up with them, according to the custom of this feast. After the festival was over, they returned, but the Boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem, and His parents did not know it.

They thought He was in the company, and after walking the whole day they looked for Him among their relatives and friends. As they did not find Him, they went back to Jerusalem searching for Him, and on the third day they found Him in the Temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. And all the people were amazed at His understanding and His answers.

His parents were very surprised when they saw Him, and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Your father and I were very worried while searching for You.” Then He said to them, “Why were you looking for Me? Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” But they did not understand this answer.

Jesus went down with them, returning to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them. As for His mother, she kept all these things in her heart.

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Saturday, 17 June 2023 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Samuel 2 : 1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd

My heart exults in YHVH, I feel strong in my God. I rejoice and laugh at my enemies for You came with power to save me.

The bow of the mighty is broken, but the weak are girded with strength. The well-fed must labour for bread, but the hungry need work no more. The childless wife has borne seven children, but the proud mother is left alone.

YHVH is Lord of life and death. He brings down to the grave and raises up. YHVH makes poor and makes rich, He brings low and He exalts.

He lifts up the lowly from the dust, and raises the poor from the ash heap; they will be called to the company of princes, and inherit a seat of honour.

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Saturday, 17 June 2023 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 61 : 9-11

Their descendants shall be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a race YHVH has blessed.

I rejoice greatly in YHVH, my soul exults for joy in my God, for He has clothed me in the garments of His salvation, He has covered me with the robe of His righteousness, like a bridegroom wearing a garland, like a bride adorned with jewels.

For as the earth brings forth its growth, and as a garden makes seeds spring up, so will the Lord YHVH make justice and praise spring up in the sight of all nations.

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Friday, 16 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, in which we celebrate the great love of God that has been shown to us firstly through His Son, Who has come down into our midst in the flesh, as the perfect manifestation of the love of God, and then, the most loving and wonderful Heart filled with love that Christ has shown us. The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus shows us the greatest love that ever exists, the pure love that God has always had for us, that He has always had for each and every one of us without exception. This very popular devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is similar to the other popular devotion to the Divine Mercy, in which both of them showed unto us the loving Heart of the Lord, that has ever been shown and directed to us, in God’s desire to reach out to us, healing us and loving us most tenderly as He has always intended.

Today all of us are reminded that God has never abandoned or forgotten about us, despite us having done the same again and again, many times, in our constant and persistent rebellions against Him, and in our refusal of listening to His words and reminders for us, which He has done for us again and again. The Lord has always ever been patient towards us, and yet, we have always spurnt His love, rejected His kind and most compassionate approaches and efforts, hurting Him again and again, making His Most Sacred Heart to be wounded because of our many transgressions, sins and disobedience. This is what the Lord has shown to some of His servants, through whom the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus became popular from. It all began from the popular devotion to the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the devotion to the Sacred Wounds of the Lord, which became popular after the Crusades and after the efforts from the saints like St. Bernard of Clairvaux and St. Francis of Assisi in calling the people of God to deepen their spiritual lives.

As many of the people had great affinity and connection to the Sacred Wounds of the Lord, this devotion naturally develops into the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, that became concrete and in the form that we are familiar with the revelations which St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received a few centuries later. Beginning with St. Bernard of Clairvaux, who spoke of the piercing of the side of the Lord during the crucifixion, in which the Most Sacred Heart of the Lord was pierced, pouring out the love that He has always had for us, and the heart being always associated with love amongst us, it therefore deepened our appreciation and understanding of just how beloved and dear each and every one of us are by the Lord, ever patient and ever generous with His kindness and compassion towards us, desiring us all to be reconciled with Him, by turning away from our wicked and sinful ways.

Many other saints like St. Bonaventure and St. Gertrude the Great also alluded to the Most Sacred Heart of the Lord Jesus, and spoke of His love, with the latter having received vision of the Lord’s loving Heart. But it was only after St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received series of visions from the Lord that the current form of the devotion became finalised, and as we recognise it today. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received the vision of the Lord and His Most Sacred Heart, in which He spoke of His Heart that had loved mankind so much, His bleeding and wounded Heart that had been rejected and abandoned by mankind again and again, and of all the sufferings, pain and persecutions that He had endured and faced in the midst of His desire to heal us and to be reconciled with us. Through all these visions and all that the faithful had received in revelation from the Lord, all of us gained greater knowledge of the love of God that had been made manifest to us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we heard from our Scripture passages today, all of us as Christians, as the beloved children of God are all expected to embrace God’s love, obey His will and to love Him most sincerely and genuinely. The Lord has always waited for us, and endlessly reached out for us in His efforts to call us to return to Him. In our first reading today from the Book of Deuteronomy, we heard the words of the Lord delivered to His people through His servant Moses, reminding all of them that they have all been chosen and consecrated to God as His holy and beloved people, and how they have received His Law and commandments, through which the Lord wanted all of them to follow Him and the path that He has led them all into, the path of righteousness and justice, the path of goodness and love, by obeying those Law and commandments.

And it was also there that God told us how His love was truly wholesome and patient, pure and sincere, and He is truly caring towards us, ever concerned of our overall well-being. It is also where we are reminded that God’s love for us, His mercy and compassion is always comprised of not just His generosity and kindness towards us, but also His desire for us to turn away from our wickedness, evil and sins. That is why God has always chastised and punished those who have committed rebellions, sins and wrongdoings, as mentioned, and as He has shown us all from time to time, again and again. That is because He truly cared for us, and He does not want us to continue to walk down the path of evil and wickedness. That is because if all of us keep on doing those wicked things, we will end up being separated forever from the Lord forever, and fall into eternal damnation, something that the Lord certainly does not want to happen to us.

In our second reading today, the Apostle St. John in one of his Epistles reminded all of us of how God made His perfect love manifested to us through His Son, the Divine Word Incarnate. Just as mentioned, the love that God has shown for us is so wonderful, magnificent and wholesome that all of us really ought to realise that we have received the most wonderful and amazing love of God through Christ, and all of us have been shown and taught what Love is truly all about, and therefore, we should do our best to show that same love in our own respective lives, by loving one another, our fellow brothers and sisters in the same way, and of course in loving God just how He has loved us all first. All of us have received God’s love and known the boundless grace and compassion of God, just as we have also heard in our Gospel passage today, when the Lord Jesus told His disciples, of Him calling all of His beloved ones, to come to Him, because through Him alone there is hope and true joy.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard and been reminded of the great and most generous love that God has always shown us, let us all therefore spend some time to reflect upon our lives and how we have lived them. Have we truly been committed to the Lord and His love for us? Have we taken His love for us for granted? Have we been so stubborn and unreasonable in continuing to disobey Him and in committing whatever is evil and wicked in His sight? That is what many of us have often done, in rejecting His ever generous offer of kindness and compassion, in having betrayed Him and chosen to follow the path of sin and evil instead. Then, we must truly remember and realise that for every sins and wicked things that we have committed, each one of these are the cause of the many wounds, hurt and pain that made His Most Sacred Heart to bleed and to be wounded, all for our sake.

That is why all of us should remind ourselves to turn away from sinful and wicked ways, and we should strive from now on to do what is right and just in our lives, remembering as always God’s ever generous mercy and kindness, His love and mercy that has always been given to us. Let us all look upon the Lord, at His Most Sacred Heart, full of wounds and hurt because of our every transgressions and sins. Let us all look at Him Who has been crucified for us, and ask ourselves, if we have deserved all that He had done for us, to the point of enduring the worst sufferings, humiliations and pain for our sake? The Lord has patiently loved us all these while, and what many of us had done to Him, is to keep on inflicting hurt upon Him whenever we continue to sin, disobey and disregard His love and kindness towards us, and whenever we also cause hurt and suffering upon others around us by our selfish actions.

May the Lord in His Most Sacred Heart, continue to love us and care for us, as He has always done, and may all of us then continue to do what is right and just, worthy and appropriate for us all as Christians, as all those who have been called and chosen by the Lord, and all beloved by the Lord all the same, with the love overflowing from His Most Sacred Heart. Let us all turn towards Him with renewed faith and commitment, with love and dedication from now on, so that we may truly be good and faithful disciples worthy of His love. May the Lord be with us always, and may He bless all of our good works and efforts, our every endeavours, now and always. Amen.