Tempus Post Epiphaniae

by

Friday, 5 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Hebrews 13 : 1-8

Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to offer hospitality; you know that some people have entertained Angels without knowing it. Remember prisoners as if you were with them in chains, and the same for those who are suffering. Remember that you also have a body.

Marriage must be respected by all and husband and wife faithful to each other. God will punish the immoral and the adulterous. Do not depend on money. Be content with having enough for today for God has said : I will never forsake you or abandon you, and we shall confidently answer : The Lord is my Helper, I will not fear; what can man do to me?

Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Consider their end and imitate their faith. Christ Jesus is the same today as yesterday and forever.

by

Thursday, 4 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are reminded that through Christ, Our Lord and Saviour all of us have received such great graces and wonders from God, that we have seen the salvation of God and been so fortunate to have heard of God’s truth from the hands of His Apostles and successors which we have received through the Church, of which we are members and parts of.

In our first reading from the Epistle to the Hebrews today, we heard of the great majesty and the power of God, so mighty and fearsome that no one could see the Lord’s majesty and power and lived. Those who saw God would perish because of their sins and unworthiness, having been corrupted ever since our first ancestors, Adam and Eve, disobeyed the Lord in the Gardens of Eden.

That was why they hid from God upon having committed the sin, and they were banished from Eden to roam about on Earth as a consequence for their sins. When Moses then later on came and meet God at Mount Horeb, saw God and was in His holy presence, his whole countenance and face changed, radiant with the glory and majesty of God, and all were terrified and awed by his appearance. Moses was perhaps one of the only few who saw God, walked with Him and lived.

But then, things changed with the coming of Christ, for in Jesus Christ the Son of God and Divine Word Incarnate, the fullness of the glory of God has been made visible and tangible through His humanity, and by His entry into this world, born of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His mother, He has bridged the once great and uncrossable chasm that existed between mankind and God. Through His coming and His sacrifice on the Cross, God has reconciled us to Himself and we have received the sure guarantee of eternal life and happiness in Him.

And it is exactly this truth which the Lord has revealed to us and passed down to us which we now believe and commit ourselves to as Christians. We believe in the Lord Who has willingly entered our world and assumed our humble human existence, that by sharing in our humanity, not only that He was able to gather us all and sanctify us through His sacrifice on the Cross, but He made Himself tangible and accessible to us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all then be thankful to God for His wonderful love, as well as also reflecting on the calling that the Lord has entrusted to us, as each and every one of us have the same mission that God has entrusted to the Apostles and disciples, all those who have been called to serve and to proclaim the truth and the Good News of God. The Lord has sent them all out to prepare the way for Him and to proclaim His truth to more and more people.

Their works are still far from over, brethren. There are still many areas that require our participation and efforts. As members of the Church, it is our obligation and duty to be active in dedicating ourselves to the Lord, in reaching out to our fellow brothers and sisters, all those who need to hear the Good News, the truth and the love of God. This is why we all need to respond to the Lord’s call and seek Him ever more courageously.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all turn towards the Lord with a renewed zeal and commitment, dedicating ourselves and committing our time and efforts, to lead more and more people down the path towards salvation and eternal life. Let us all be entrust ourselves to the Lord, and be more and more courageous and willing to walk faithfully in the path of the Lord.

And let us all pray, that God will continue to strengthen us and guide us in our journey of life, in glorifying Him at all times through our actions and deeds. May God bless us all, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

by

Thursday, 4 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 6 : 7-13

At that time, Jesus called the Twelve to Him, and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over evil spirits, and He ordered them to take nothing for the journey, except a staff : no food, no bag, no money on their belts. They were to wear sandals and were not to take an extra tunic.

And He added, “In whatever house you are welcomed, stay there until you leave the place. If any place does not receive you, and the people refuse to listen to you, leave after shaking the dust off your feet. It will be a testimony against them.”

So they set out to proclaim that this was the time to repent. They drove out many demons and healed many sick people by anointing them.

by

Thursday, 4 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 47 : 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 9, 10-11

Great is YHVH, most worthy of praise in the City of God, His holy mountain. Beautifully elevated, it is the joy of all the earth.

Mount Zion, heavenly mountain, the City of the great King. Here, within her lines of defence, God has shown Himself to be a sure fortress.

As we have heard, so have we seen, in the City of YHVH of hosts, in the City of Our God, the City God founded forever.

Let us recall Your unfailing love, o God, inside Your Temple. Let Your praise, as does Your Name, o God, reach to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is ever victorious.

by

Thursday, 4 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Hebrews 12 : 18-19, 21-24

What you have come to, is nothing known to the senses : nor heat of a blazing fire, darkness and gloom and storms, blasts of trumpet or such a voice that the people pleaded, that no further word be spoken.

The sight was so terrifying, that Moses said : I tremble with fear. But you came near to Mount Zion, to the City of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, with its innumerable Angels. You have come to the solemn feast, the assembly of the firstborn of God, whose names are written in heaven.

There is God, Judge of all, with the spirits of the upright, brought to perfection. There is Jesus, the Mediator of the New Covenant, with the sprinkled Blood that cries out more effectively than Abel’s.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are brought to pay attention and focus on the Lord and just how much He has been so patient with us, all these while despite all of our disobedience and stubborn attitude. And likened as a loving father in our Scripture passages today, particularly from our first reading and Psalm today, we are reminded just how our Lord is stern with us and firm in guiding our path, and yet, always filled with love and genuine compassion as well.

In our first reading today, we are called by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews to reflect on the love of God, our heavenly Father, Who corrects and punishes those whom He loves, not because He wants to make us suffer and endure difficulties. Rather, if we do not learn our lesson and continue to act irresponsibly, we will end up in even greater suffering and pain. I am referring to the eternal suffering and damnation in hell that awaits all those who have not been faithful to God and His ways.

The Lord guides us in various ways, and He has shown us His loving and tender care even when He was at His sternest against us and our ridiculous antics and stubbornness. He has always been patient in calling us all to return to Him, in waiting for us to embrace Him with love and to spend time with Him once again. And yet, we just how He has been treated, being rejected and cast out, shut out and ostracised when He came into our midst, even by those who knew Him.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the time when the Lord Jesus came to Nazareth in Galilee, His hometown, when He went to the local synagogue and began to proclaim the Word of God to the people there. They refused to believe in Him and doubted Him, outraged and in disbelief that one of them, who had lived in that very same village could have been the Messiah or Saviour promised for the people of God. This prevented the Lord from doing His works and miracles there.

As we heard all of these readings from the Scripture today, we are all often so stubborn in our ways and we often refused to listen to reason that we end up rejecting the Lord and His generous offer of love. Like the people of Nazareth, who thought that they knew better of just Who the Lord Jesus was, and thought that it was impossible for Him to have been the One He claimed He was, thus, pride and hubris often became the greatest pitfalls in our path towards the salvation in God.

That is why all of us ought to resist these temptations to succumb to our pride and ego, our desires and hubris, ambition and all the other things that often became great obstacles blocking our path towards God. And instead of hardening our hearts and minds, we should be humbler and be more willing to open our hearts and minds to the Lord, to welcome Him inside and allow Him to transform us and make use of us to be His instruments by which He performs many wonderful things in this world.

Today, we should look upon the good examples of St. Blaise and St. Ansgar, faithful servants of God and holy men whose life and dedication to the Lord should inspire us to be more faithful and be more willing to follow the Lord ourselves. St. Blaise was the famous physician and Bishop of Sebastea during the days of the later Roman Empire, renowned for his dedication to his people, as well as his care for those who were sick, both as a physician for the body as well as the physician of the soul.

St. Blaise healed many people through his commitment and work, and he inspired many others even after he had been arrested and suffered martyrdom in the persecution by the Roman Emperor Licinius. And in the famous story of how St. Blaise miraculously healed a young boy who had been inflicted with a stuck fishbone in his throat and was in danger of death, many became believers through him and the famous ‘Blessing of the Throats’ done on St. Blaise’s day today invoke this saint’s intercession for many of us.

St. Ansgar meanwhile was known as the Apostle to the North for his tireless efforts and many trips to what is now the land of Germany, ministering to the faithful there and proclaiming the truth of God to many more people, to those who have not yet heard of the Lord’s truth, grace and love. He preached the Words of the Lord to those pagans who have often been stubborn in refusing to believe in God, and through his patience and efforts, many eventually came to see the Light of God and accept Him as their Lord and Saviour.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all follow in the footsteps of our Lord and His faithful servants, and let us all walk in His presence, faithfully and lovingly, committing ourselves anew to the cause of Our Lord and glorify Him and His Name by our actions and deeds. May God bless us all, and may He strengthen us all with courage and faith, now and always. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Mark 6 : 1-6

At that time, leaving the place where He resurrected the daughter of Jairus, Jesus returned to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and most of those who heard Him were astonished.

But they said, “How did this come to Him? What kind of wisdom has been given to Him, that He also performs such miracles? Who is He but the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? His sisters, too, are they not here among us?” So they took offence at Him.

And Jesus said to them, “Prophets are despised only in their own country, among their relatives, and in their own family.” And He could work no miracles there, but only healed a few sick people, by laying His hands on them. Jesus Himself was astounded at their unbelief.

Jesus then went around the villages, teaching.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Psalm 102 : 1-2, 13-14, 17-18a

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

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.

But the Lord’s kindness is forever with those who fear Him; so is His justice, for their children’s children, for those who keep His covenant and remember His commands.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2021 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Hebrews 12 : 4-7, 11-15

Have you already shed your blood in the struggle against sin? Do not forget the comforting words that Wisdom addresses to you as children : My son, pay attention when the Lord corrects you and do not be discouraged when He punishes you. For the Lord corrects those He loves and chastises everyone He accepts as a son.

What you endure is in order to correct you. God treats you like sons and what son is not corrected by his father? All correction is painful at the moment, rather than pleasant; later it brings the fruit of peace, that is, holiness to those who have been trained by it.

Lift up, then, your drooping hands, and strengthen your trembling knees; make level the ways for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but healed. Strive for peace with all and strive to be holy, for without holiness no one will see the Lord. See that no one falls from the grace of God, lest a bitter plant spring up and its poison corrupt many among you.

by

Tuesday, 2 February 2021 : Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, World Day of Consecrated Life (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, which takes place exactly forty days after the beginning of the Christmas season, the fortieth day since the twenty-fifth day of December. Today traditionally marks the end of the Christmas season and celebrations, and in the traditional Roman calendar, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated, when mothers like the Blessed Virgin Mary are welcomed back to the Temple forty days after giving birth.

This day, we celebrate the day when the Lord was presented to the world, especially to the Jewish people, a revelation of God’s salvation to them, represented by the man of God, Simeon and the old prophetess Anna. This is in parallel to what we have celebrated a few weeks earlier in the Solemnity of the Epiphany, marking the revelation of the Christ to the Gentiles through the Three Magi.

In this celebration today, we mark the moment God revealed His salvation to His people, fulfilling the promises He had made to them through His prophets, and we heard of all the things that had happened at that time, how Simeon and Anna both said that the Child would be the great Sign and the Light of God’s salvation to all. The long wait for the promised salvation had therefore been over.

And the Lord Jesus was presented to the Lord at His Temple in accordance with the Law which stated that all the firstborn sons ought to be presented and dedicated to God. This is also especially unique because this Child was none other than the Son of God Himself, Who was therefore in fact, presented to His heavenly Father, dedicated and committed to the mission entrusted in Him for the salvation of the whole world.

The Son of God has revealed Himself to us, showing the love and compassion of God, and we are all called to embrace this love and compassion, and to turn towards Him and looking up to Him, remembering and realising just how fortunate each and every one of us have been to have this loving gift of salvation from God. Thanks to Him, we can have hope once again.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we also celebrate the occasion of the World Day of Consecrated Life, remembering particularly all those who have followed in the Lord’s footsteps by dedicating themselves wholeheartedly in consecrating their lives to God just as the Lord has been presented at the Temple and was consecrated for the mission entrusted to Him.

Those who have been called to the Consecrated Life are those brothers and sisters of ours who committed their lives wholly to God, who desire nothing else but to serve God and glorify Him by their lives. They spent their whole lives living together in faithful communities, either cloistered in the monasteries or living in a community of brothers and sisters dedicated in serving the people of God.

Today all of us thank the Lord for the gift of the dedication of these fellow brothers and sisters of ours, and of course we also show them our appreciation as well. We pray for all of them that they can stay committed in their calling and ministry, in whatever it is that they are doing, through prayers and actions, and we pray that there will be more of those whom God had called who will respond to the call to Consecrated Life and live a holy life befitting of those whom God had called and chosen.

May the Lord continue to guide those whom He had called and chosen, and may He strengthen their faith and give them the courage to persevere through the various challenges in life. May He also awaken in more among us to respond to His call, that more and more men and women may come to join the Consecrated Life, and be inspiration in faith for everyone of us. May God bless us all, now and always. Amen.