Liturgical Colour : Green
Mark 8 : 11-13
At that time, the Pharisees came and started to argue with Jesus. Hoping to embarrass Him, they asked for some heavenly sign. Then His Spirit was moved. He gave a deep sigh and said, “Why do the people of this present time ask for a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this people.”
Then He left them, got into the boat again and went to the other side of the lake.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 49 : 1 and 8, 16bc-17, 20-21
The God of gods, the Lord has spoken, He summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. Not for your sacrifices do I reprove you, for your burnt offerings are ever before Me.
What right have you to mouth My laws, or to talk about My covenant? You hate My commands and cast My words behind you.
You speak ill of your brother, and slander your own mother’s son. Because I was silent while you did these things, you thought I was like you. But now I rebuke you and make this charge against you.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Genesis 4 : 1-15, 25
Adam had intercourse with Eve his wife; she became pregnant and gave birth to a child. She named him Cain, for she said, “I have got a man with help from YHVH.” She later gave birth to Abel, his brother. Abel was a shepherd and kept flocks, and Cain tilled the soil.
It happened after a time that Cain brought fruits of the soil as an offering to YHVH. Abel for his part brought the firstborn of his flock, and some fat as well. Now YHVH was well pleased with Abel and his offering, but towards Cain and his offering He showed no pleasure. This made Cain very angry and downcast.
Then YHVH said to Cain, “Why are you angry and downcast? If you do right, why do you not look up? But if you are not doing what is right, sin is lurking at the door. It is striving to get you, but you must control it.”
Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go to the fields.” Once there, Cain turned on his brother Abel and killed him. YHVH said to Cain, “Where is your brother, Abel?” He answered, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?”
YHVH asked, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. Now be cursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood that your hand had shed. When you till the soil, it will no longer yield you its produce. You will be a fugitive wandering on the earth.”
Cain said to YHVH, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. See! Today You drive me from this land. I must hide from You and be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth, and it will so happen that whoever meets me will kill me.” YHVH said to him, “Well then, whoever kills Cain, will suffer vengeance seven times.” And YHVH put a mark on Cain to prevent anyone who met him from killing him.
Adam again had intercourse with his wife and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth; for she said, “YHVH has given me another child in place of Abel since Cain killed him.”
Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together in the Holy Presence of God in His House, each and every one of us are reminded to keep faithfully the Law and the commandments that He has bestowed upon us, all that He has given us in order to help us find our way to Him, to His salvation and grace. All of us as Christians are called to be good and faithful disciples of our Lord, to be good and exemplary role models in our way of life, in everything we say and do, so that everyone who hears us, sees and witnesses our actions and works, may all come to know the Lord and His truth more through us, and hopefully we may inspire more people to come to believe in the Lord as well. Whether we are to do good or to do evil is completely within our choice, and God has given us the freedom to choose our course of action in life.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard the words of the prophet Sirach speaking to the people of God and reminding them all, including all of us that God has given us His Law and commandments, and it is really up to us to make the choice whether to do what is right and just in accordance to God’s Law and commandments, or whether we want to disobey Him and walk down the path of sin instead. The Lord has given us all the free will and the freedom to choose our paths, and He has also taught us and revealed to us what we all need to do if we want to be faithful and committed to Him. Unfortunately, more often than not we chose to walk down the path of rebellion and evil than to obey the Lord and His commandments, especially because we were unable to resist the temptations all around us, and because we see the path of disobedience and sin as the ‘easier’ path.
In our second reading today, we heard from the Apostle St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city of Corinth in which he spoke of the teaching and revelation of Divine wisdom, the Wisdom of God, the truth that the Lord Himself has revealed to His disciples and Church, and which He reaffirmed to us through His Holy Spirit. St. Paul compared this Wisdom and truth to the wisdom and ways of the world, which is finite and which leads us down the wrong path in life, while the Wisdom of God and all that He has revealed and taught to us will lead us down the path of righteousness and grace, and through that path, we shall enter into a new life blessed and truly worthy of God, a path that he has exhorted, encouraged and reminded all the faithful people of God to follow.
It is in our Gospel passage today then that we heard parts of what each and every one of us as Christians are expected to follow and obey, in being good and dedicated followers and disciples of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. In that Gospel passage, we heard from the Lord Himself, speaking before all the people gathered to listen to Him, how He told them that He came into this world to fulfil the Law and the commandments of God, not to cancel or eradicate them. He came into this world to reveal the true meaning, purpose and intention of the Law, to purify the commandments and laws of the Lord from all the accumulated misinterpretations, misunderstandings and abuse from the people entrusted with their enforcement and preservation, those who had even appropriated the Law for their own selfish desires and benefits.
What the Lord presented before the people as we heard in our Gospel passage today, was the call to everyone to be truly faithful to God and to be devoted to Him out of genuine love and devotion, and not because one is just merely fulfilling the obligations or doing things out of fear or in desiring to maintain good and favourable appearances, or merely as a formality to be fulfilled and completed. In essence, the Lord told all of the people and hence all of us that being Christians means that we all have to be sincere in doing God’s will and in obeying His Law and commandments, and most importantly, we must always be centred and focused on God as the focus, emphasis and the main reason of our lives and existence in this world. Each and every one of us are called to be truly righteous, good and just in the manner that our Lord Himself is all good and righteous.
The Lord made His comments and spoke before the people with the context that the people had been making excuses and trying to find and exploit loopholes in the Law, and not truly believing in the Lord or not truly having faith in Him, and not loving Him as they should have. They were focused more on themselves and their selfish desires and wants, their ambitions, pride, ego and worldly achievements, and as such, while they may outwardly appear to be faithful, but inside, their faith are truly found wanting and lacking. Unless they are more faithful than just being superficial and outwardly faithful, and truly develop a strong and dynamic faith in God, then it may be hard for one to come closer to the Lord and to be worthy to receive His grace and salvation. This is why the Lord reminded all of us this Sunday through these readings, so that all of us may develop the right attitude in life, and nurture in our lives the love that we ought to have for the Lord, as well as for our fellow brothers and sisters, just as the Lord has taught us.
Essentially, as Christians we cannot be idle in our lives, and we must make good use of whatever we have been blessed and given, so that our lives may be fruitful and filled with love for both God and for our fellow men, and that we resist the temptations to sin and to disobey the Lord. When the Lord mentioned in our Gospel passage today, the rather intriguing advice to the people to cut off their hands and to pluck out their eyes if those things led them all to sin, what He actually meant was that, first of all, sin is harmful and dangerous, and if we are not careful and if we do not take the necessary steps to resist the temptations to sin, those sins may end up leading us down the path towards damnation, out of which there is no hope and escape for us, if we realise it too late that we have allowed sin to jeopardise and destroy us.
We should not be complacent and remain vigilant against the temptations all around us, and against the vile efforts and works of Satan and all of his wicked allies, the fallen angels, demons and evil spirits, all of whom are always hard and busy at work in trying to destroy us and to mislead us all down the path towards damnation and destruction. We must also remember again, just as I had mentioned in the beginning of this Sunday’s discourse, that God has given us the free will and the freedom to choose our path in life. At the same time, we have also been given the means and the opportunities to do either what is good and just in the sight of God and man alike, or instead to do what is wicked and evil. The choice is ours, and God has given us that choice to make. And now, can we discern well our path so that we will make the right choice?
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence listen to the Lord calling on us to follow Him, and let us all commit ourselves to live our lives henceforth in a most Christian manner, doing wholeheartedly all that the Lord has shown and taught us to do, in loving Him and in loving our fellow brothers and sisters, generously offering ourselves and our love for the glory of God and for the wellbeing of our fellow brethren all around us. May God continue to guide us all in our every actions and efforts in life, and may He bless us all in out every endeavours and good works, now and always, evermore. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Matthew 5 : 17-37
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “Do not think that I have come to annul the Law and the Prophets. I have not come to annul them but to fulfil 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; an 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
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “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; an 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.”
Liturgical Colour : Green
1 Corinthians 2 : 6-10
In fact, we do speak of wisdom to the mature in faith, although it is not a wisdom of this world or of its rulers, who are doomed to perish. We teach the mystery and secret plan of divine wisdom, which God destined from the beginning to bring us to Glory.
No ruler of this world ever knew this; otherwise they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. But as Scripture says : Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it dawned on the mind what God has prepared for those who love Him. God has revealed it to us, through His Spirit, because the Spirit probes everything, even the depth of God.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 118 : 1-2, 4-5, 17-18, 33-34
Blessed are they whose ways are upright, who follow the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who treasure His word and seek Him with all their heart.
You have laid down precepts to be obeyed. O, that my ways were steadfast in observing Your statutes!
Be kind to Your servant, that I may live to follow Your word. Open my eyes that I may see the marvellous truths in Your law.
Explain to me, o Lord, Your commandments, and I will be ever faithful to them. Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law with all my heart.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Sirach 15 : 16-21 (Greek Septuagint – Sirach 15 : 15-20)
If you wish, you can keep the commandments and it is in your power to remain faithful. He has set fire and water before you; you stretch out your hand to whichever you prefer.
Life and death are set before man : whichever a man prefers will be given him. How magnificent is the wisdom of the Lord! He is powerful and all-seeing. His eyes are on those who fear Him. He knows all the works of man.
He has commanded no one to be godless and has given no one permission to sin.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, marking that well-known Apparition of the Mother of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary at the site of Lourdes in rural southern part of France. This Apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes happened over a century and a half ago, in the mid 19th century, as Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes appeared before a young peasant girl named Bernadette Soubirous, now better known as St. Bernadette, revealing her true nature and intentions to her. Despite the many challenges and doubts that St. Bernadette faced back then, eventually the Church acknowledged the vision and Apparition to be authentic, and celebrated universally as the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, with the site of Lourdes itself becoming one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the world.
Our Lady often appeared throughout history during times of great trials and hardships for the faithful people of God and for the world in general. She appeared in Hispania in the years of the persecutions against Christians during the earliest days of the Church to St. James the Apostle, now known as the Apparition of Our Lady of the Pillar, when Mary, who was probably even still living in the world back then, appeared to the Apostle to reassure him and to strengthen his resolve in proclaiming the truth of God to the people that he was ministering to. Mary also appeared in Guadalupe in Mexico, during the years immediately following the post-Columbian European expansion into the American continent, the New World when wars, conflicts, pandemics and other factors led to the sufferings and deaths of untold millions. Back then it was also right in the midst of the Protestant reformation when the Church became divided and splintered due to heretical teachings of those so-called reformers.
In all those occasions and others, the Blessed Virgin, Mother of God appeared to various people including that at Lourdes because she wanted to show us all the love of God and remind us of everything that her Son had done for our sake, in His sacrifice on His Cross out of ever pure and enduring love for each and every one of us. Despite our many transgressions and stubborn attitude in rejecting His kindness and love, God has always loved us regardless, and desired that each and every one of us may find our way back to Him, to be reconciled to Him, and at the same time He has also entrusted all of us to the loving care of His mother Mary, just as He had done so from His Cross. This way, each and every one of us are beloved and dear to her, and receive from her the most tender love that she has shown her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
In Lourdes, Our Lady appeared to the young, fourteen year old Bernadette Soubirous in the grotto of Massabielle where the Shrine to our Lady of Lourdes now stands. St. Bernadette initially did not know who it was that called her and appeared to her, but as she continued to meet Our Lady of Lourdes on more and more occasions, listening to her speaking and revealing more about herself, St. Bernadette kept on coming back to meet the Apparition of Our Lady. On this date, the eleventh day of February, was the date of the first apparition, and in total eighteen apparitions of Our Lady happened, and as people began to hear about the apparition of the Lady dressed in white with blue sash as encountered by the young St. Bernadette, they started to come to the site of the Apparition.
In one of the apparitions, Our Lady told St. Bernadette to dig the ground at that area and drink from the spring that would come forth from the ground. St. Bernadette did so faithfully and although it made her to appear dishevelled with mud, and dismayed some of her supporters, but the spring that came forth at the grotto site of the Apparition quickly gained a great reputation for healing, as the waters that came forth from the spring brought about quite a number of miraculous healings that scientists and doctors later on could not explain by whatever means, and the Church later certified as being authentic and miraculous in nature. That was the beginning of the famous healing miracles at Lourdes, and the beginning of the popular pilgrimage to the site of Our Lady’s Apparition, which drew millions of pilgrims and more every year.
When met by skepticism and doubt by the Church authorities, on the date of the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord, Our Lady told St. Bernadette Soubirous that she is the Immaculate Conception, which stunned the authorities, the local bishop and priest who therefore became convinced of the authenticity of the Apparition, as the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was just proclaimed by the Blessed Pope Pius IX four years prior to the Apparition, and at the age and time back then, with much more difficult communication and transport, there could have been no way for an illiterate young peasant girl like St. Bernadette to know this truth about the Blessed Virgin, the Immaculate Conception, unless the Apparition was indeed truly of the Mother of God herself.
From then on, for the next a century and half and more until today, Lourdes had become a place visited by innumerable pilgrims and Christian faithful, with various reasons, and many among them sought healing from their physical troubles and maladies. Many were cured miraculously by their faith in God, and with the help and intercession of Our Lady of Lourdes, His mother, who is also our loving mother. That is why today, on this World Day of the Sick, on the Feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes, each and every one of us are reminded of God’s love for each one of us, which He has reassured us in many times, and which He lavished on us through the help of none other than His own mother Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, we are all seeking for healing for our various maladies and sickness, our various illnesses and troubles in life.
And even, just as we seek for God’s healing for us, among those of us who are perfectly fit physically and mentally, there is still the sickness of our souls, the corruption of sin that has always been ever present all around us. All of us mankind are sinners be it great or small sins that we have committed, or whether few or plenty in terms of the amount of sins we committed. Not only that, but it is the Lord alone Who is able to heal us from our sins, as while doctors and other means may heal us from our worldly sickness and troubles, no one can forgive sin save that of God Himself. Hence, each one of us on this day are reminded that we who are in need of God’s healing and mercy, all of us should come to seek Him wholeheartedly, and to humbly entrust ourselves to Him with the help from His most loving Mother Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes.
Let us ask then, for our blessed and loving Mother to pray and intercede for us, who are sinners and afflicted with many sickness and troubles, foremost of which is our corruption by sin. May Our Lady of Lourdes continue to pray and intercede for us sinners, and for those afflicted by various maladies, illnesses and sickness, all throughout the world. May the Lord have mercy on us and heal us from our troubles, and help us to come back to Him, and to be reunited with Him, in perfect bliss and happiness one day, free from the troubles of our flesh and our souls, pure and perfect once again. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)
Mark 8 : 1-10
At that time, soon afterwards Jesus was in the midst of another large crowd, that obviously had nothing to eat. So He called His disciples and said to them, “I feel sorry for these people, because they have been with Me for three days and now have nothing to eat. If I send them to their homes hungry, they will faint on the way; some of them have come a long way.”
His disciples replied, “Where, in a deserted place like this, could we get enough bread to feed these people?” He asked them, “How many loaves have you?” And they answered, “Seven.” Then He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves and giving thanks, He broke them, and handed them to His disciples to distribute. And they distributed them among the people. They also had some small fish, so Jesus said a blessing, and asked that these be shared as well.
The people ate and were satisfied. The broken pieces were collected, seven wicker baskets full of leftovers. Now those who had eaten were about four thousand in number. Jesus sent them away, and immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and went to the region of Dalmanutha.
Alternative reading (Mass of Our Lady of Lourdes)
John 2 : 1-11
At that time, three days after Jesus called Nathanael, there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus was also invited to the wedding with His disciples. When all the wine provided for the celebration had been served, and they had run out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”
Jesus replied, “Woman, what concern is that to you and Me? My hour has not yet come.” However His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” Nearby were six stone water jars, set there for ritual washing as practiced by the Jews; each jar could hold twenty or thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them to the brim. Then Jesus said, “Now draw some out and take it to the steward.” So they did. The steward tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing from where it had come; for only the servants who had drawn the water knew. So, he called the bridegroom to tell him, “Everyone serves the best wine first, and when people have drunk enough, he serves that which is ordinary. Instead you have kept the best wine until the end.”
This miraculous sign was the first, and Jesus performed it at Cana in Galilee. In this way He let His glory appear, and His disciples believed in Him.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 