Theotokos

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Monday, 12 September 2016 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Most Holy Name of Mary)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we commemorate together the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary, where we celebrate together the gift of God for us in His own mother Mary, the one through whom the Saviour of this world had been born and entered the world. Her role in our salvation is so great that she is truly worth of her title as the Ark of the New Covenant and as the Mother of God.

Satan and his allies tremble at the mere mention of the name of Mary, just as they tremble even more at the Name of Jesus her Son. Satan knows full well that it was through Mary which his final defeat has been confirmed and completed in all its perfection. Through Mary, Jesus our Lord was born into this world, and a world that has stayed in the darkness for long had now seen a great new light.

We cannot separate Mary from her Son, just as we cannot separate Christ from His own mother. And that is the joy that we all should have, knowing that God through Mary had made known to us all His will, that He may be in us and we all may be in Him. Through Mary, by the works of the Holy Spirit and by the will of the Father, the Divine Word has become flesh, and took up our own form, that the Son of God is also the Son of Man.

St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians emphasised that communion which all of the faithful have with God, and that is the true and real meaning of Communion, that all of us who have received worthily the gift of baptism, the gift of the Holy Spirit and finally the gift of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, may be united with one another and with Him through that same Eucharist.

And God made this possible by the coming of Himself through Mary, the faithful woman who had devoted her whole life to God, to her own Son, following Him through many of the important events and moments especially during His mission and works in order to save the whole world and all mankind. And in that, Mary yet again and again not only revealed to us the greatness of God, but also her own exemplary attitudes which all of us can and should emulate as well.

Even though the news handed down to her through the Archangel Gabriel must have come as a surprise, but she took it upon herself with faith and commitment, knowing that God has a plan for her, and she needs only to trust Him in that matter. And that is the example which many of us can also learn from her. While our ancestors disobeyed the Lord to satisfy their own greed and desire for knowledge, eating from the forbidden tree, and while Satan disobeyed the Lord for his pride, Mary was obedient all the way throughout her life.

Let us all today find some time to reflect on this matter, and look back into our own respective lives, in how we carry out our actions and how we live these lives God had given to us. Have we been faithful to Him in all of our words, deeds and works? Have we shown love to one another as He has loved us, and as Mary had loved her Son, following Him all the way even to Calvary?

Have we all been righteous in our deeds, shunning all forms of evil, wickedness and fornications? Have we all put our trust in God in the way that Mary had done? Or did we rather put our trust in ourselves and in our own human abilities? Through Mary, the mother of our Lord we can learn many things, especially on how we can be better disciples and followers of our God.

Let us all ask Mary, our greatest intercessor before God, as she constantly and continuously pray for us all, whom God from the cross had entrusted as her own children as well, that she may plead for our case, we who are unworthy and great sinners, so that God may show His mercy on us, and with our repentance, He may lead us into the new life everlasting promised to all the believers.

May God bless us all and help us that we may live our lives with the same devotion and commitment that Mary has shown in her own life. May He keep us in His grace always and may He empower us all to become His beloved children, living together with Him in eternal bliss, our hope for our own future in the world that is to come. Amen.

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Monday, 12 September 2016 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Most Holy Name of Mary)
Luke 7 : 1-10

At that time, when Jesus had finished teaching the people, He went to Capernaum. There was a captain whose servant was very sick and near to death, a man very dear to him. So when he heard about Jesus, he sent some elders of the Jews to persuade Him to come and save his servant’s life.

The elders came to Jesus and begged Him earnestly, saying, “He deserves this of You, for he loves our people and even built a synagogue for us.” Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house, when the captain sent friends to give this message, “Sir, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy to welcome You under my roof. You see, I did not approach You myself. Just give the order, and my servant will be healed.”

“For I myself, a junior officer, give orders to my soldiers, and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes; and to the other, ‘Come!’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”

On hearing these words, Jesus was filled with admiration. He turned and said to the people with him, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.” The people, sent by the captain, went back to his house; there they found that the servant was well.

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Mary)
Luke 1 : 39-47

At that time, Mary then set out for a town in the hill country of Judah. She entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leapt in her womb. Elizabeth was filled with Holy Spirit, and giving a loud cry, said, “You are most blessed among women, and Blessed is the Fruit of your womb!”

“How is it that the mother of my Lord comes to me? The moment your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby within me suddenly leapt for joy. Blessed are you who believed that the Lord’s word would come true!”

And Mary said, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit exults in God my Saviour!”

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Monday, 12 September 2016 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Mary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Most Holy Name of Mary)
Psalm 39 : 7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 17

Sacrifice and oblation You did not desire: this You had me understand. Burnt offering and sin offering You do not require. Then I said, “Here I come!”

“As the scroll says of me. To do Your will is my delight, o God, for Your law is within my heart.”

In the great assembly I have proclaimed Your saving help. My lips, o Lord, I did not seal – You know that very well.

But may all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; and may all who love Your saving grace continually say, “The Lord is great.”

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Mary)
Luke 1 : 46-47, 48-49, 50-51, 52-53, 54-55

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit exults in God my Saviour!

He has looked upon His servant in her lowliness, and people forever will call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, Holy is His Name!

From age to age His mercy extends to those who live in His presence. He has acted with power and done wonders, and scattered the proud with their plans.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up those who are downtrodden. He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

He held out His hand to Israel, His servant, for He remembered His mercy, even as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.

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Monday, 12 September 2016 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Mary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Most Holy Name of Mary)
1 Corinthians 11 : 17-26, 33

To continue with my advice, I cannot praise you, for your gatherings are not for the better but for the worse. First, as I have heard, when you gather together, there are divisions among you and I partly believe it. There may have to be different groups among you, so that it becomes clear who among you are genuine.

Your gatherings are no longer the Supper of the Lord, for each one eats at once his own food and while one is hungry, the other is getting drunk. Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or perhaps you despise the Church of God and desire to humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say? Shall I praise you? For this I cannot praise you.

This is the tradition of the Lord that I received and that in my turn I have handed on to you: the Lord Jesus, on the night that He was delivered up, took bread and, after giving thanks, broke it, saying, “This is My Body which is broken for you; do this in memory of Me.”

In the same manner, taking the cup after the supper, He said, “This cup is the new Covenant in My Blood. Whenever you drink it, do it in memory of Me.” So, then, whenever you eat of this bread and drink from this cup, you are proclaiming the death of the Lord until He comes.

So then, brothers, when you gather for a meal, wait for one another.

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Mary)
Galatians 4 : 4-7

But when the fullness of time came, God sent His Son, He came born of woman and subject to the Law, in order to redeem the subjects of the Law, that we might receive adoption as children of God. And because you are children, God has sent into your hearts the Spirit of His Son which cries out : Abba! that is, Father!

You yourself are no longer a slave but a son or daughter, and yours is the inheritance by God’s grace.

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Mary)
Ephesians 1 : 3-6

Blessed be God, the Father of Christ Jesus our Lord, Who in Christ has blessed us from heaven with every spiritual blessing. God chose us in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy and without sin in His presence.

From eternity He destined us in love to be His adopted sons and daughters through Christ Jesus, thus fulfilling His free and generous will. This goal suited Him : that His loving-kindness which He granted us in His Beloved might finally receive all glory and praise.

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Monday, 22 August 2016 : 21st Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we commemorate together the feast of the Queenship of Mary, ever-virgin, the mother of God. We celebrate she whom God has appointed to great honour, as the Queen of Heaven, as the Queen of All Saints and as the Queen of Angels, in accordance to her position as the mother of our Lord and God, Jesus Christ, and thus, being the Mother of God, merit to be the honoured persona in the kingdom of God.

Some of us may think that such attribution of honour is excessive and unnecessary. Indeed, critics of the faith and the Church had attacked us based on the honour and the praise which we have heaped on Mary, the praises we have sung of her, and all that we have asked her to intercede for our sake, that God may hear us through her prayers.

But that was because they failed to grasp and understand the reality of who Mary is and how significant is her life and actions to all of us. Mary is not just like any other woman or as any other human beings in that she has been chosen out of many to be the bearer of the Saviour bearing the salvation which God had promised His people ever since the beginning of time.

Firstly, Mary was conceived without sin, to prepare for her role as the Ark of the New Covenant, to bear the new Covenant of God with mankind, that is in Jesus Christ her Son. But even more importantly, she carried herself with proper decorum and act in accordance to what is expected of all the children and all the followers of the Lord.

That said, we did not elevate her to be a deity or a goddess over us, to be worshipped and adored as the pagans had done. She gained that great honour not by her own virtue or power, but because her Son is the Lord and King and Master of all the universe, the Lord of heaven and earth, so therefore it is just to call her a Queen. If a king’s mother is called the queen mother, then by the same argument, it is just to call Mary the Queen of Heaven, of All Saints, and of Angels.

In Mary, we see a great example to be adapted as our own. After all, her devotion to God and her obedience are things we can also adapt in our own lives. She listened to the Lord even when she was unsure and had doubts about what the Archangel Gabriel had told her that she would become the mother of the Son of God Most High and Saviour of the world, but she pressed on nonetheless, and did all she could in order to care for Jesus throughout His life.

And as God rewarded Mary with the glory of heaven, as we celebrated the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin just last Sunday, over a week ago, we see in her the fulfilment of the promise which God had told us mankind since so long ago. In her we see our eventual triumph against the forces of evil and darkness, the triumph and victory we will experience if we are faithful to God to the end, against the bondage to sin and wickedness, which had so far separated us from the Lord and His love.

As we celebrate the feast of the Queenship of Mary on this day, let us also take some time to look deep within ourselves, and see how we have lived our lives all these while. Have we been faithful to the Lord in the way that she had been faithful? Or have we instead walked the path of rebelliousness and stubborn refusal to repent from our sins?

The choice is ours, brethren, for us to choose between following God and seeking His forgiveness or to move away from Him, turn ourselves away from His mercy and instead embrace the tempting ways of this world. Shall we now not be worried or be hesitant any longer, but devote ourselves anew to the Lord, and walk forevermore in His ways from now on?

Let us seek the help of our beloved Queen, Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. May she be our greatest help and intercessor, praying for our sake to her Son at all times. Pray for us, o Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Heaven, of All Saints and of all Angels, our role model in faith. Amen.

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Monday, 22 August 2016 : 21st Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 26-38

In the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth. He was sent to a young virgin, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the family of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

The Angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Mary was troubled at these words, wondering what this greeting could mean. But the Angel said, “Do not fear, Mary, for God has looked kindly on you. You shall conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call Him Jesus.”

“He will be great, and shall rightly be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the kingdom of David, His ancestor; He will rule over the people of Jacob forever, and His reign shall have no end.”

Then Mary said to the Angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” And the Angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the Holy Child to be born of you shall be called Son of God. Even your relative Elizabeth is expecting a son in her old age, although she was unable to have a child; and she is now in her sixth month. With God nothing is impossible.”

Then Mary said, “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as you have said.” And the Angel left her.

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Monday, 22 August 2016 : 21st Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 112 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

Alleluia! Praise, o servants of the Lord, praise the Name of the Lord! Blessed be the Name of the Lord now and forever!

From eastern lands to the western islands, may the Name of the Lord be praised! The Lord is exalted over the nations, His glory above the heavens.

Who is like the Lord our God, Who sits enthroned on high, but also bends down to see on earth as in heaven?

He lifts up the poor from the dust and the needy from the ash heap. He makes them sit with princes, with rulers of His people.

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Monday, 22 August 2016 : 21st Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 9 : 1-6

The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light. A light has dawned on those who live in the land of the shadow of death. You have enlarged the nation; You have increased their joy. They rejoice before You, as people rejoice at harvest time as they rejoice in dividing the spoil.

For the yoke of their burden, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressors, You have broken it as on the day of Midian. Every warrior’s boot that tramped in war, every cloak rolled in blood, will be thrown out for burning, will serve as fuel for the fire.

For a Child is born to us, a Son is given us; the royal ornament is laid upon His shoulder, and His Name is proclaimed : “Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” To the increase of His powerful rule in peace, there will be no end.

Vast will be His dominion, He will reign on David’s throne and over all his kingdom, to establish and uphold it with justice and righteousness from this time onward and forever. The zealous love of YHVH Sabaoth will do this.

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Monday, 15 August 2016 : Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White (Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, honouring that moment when Mary, the mother of God, was bodily assumed or brought up directly to the presence of God in heaven, in glorious reward for the faith that she had exhibited and professed her whole life, and for her special role as the Bearer of the Saviour of the world.

Mary is the Ark of the New Covenant, as she bore within her the New Covenant in Jesus Christ that He has established anew with us. And so sacred is the Holy Ark that is Mary, exemplary in her faith and commitment to God, that God would not want her to suffer the pain of death, which is the consequence for sin. For she was conceived and prepared into the world without sin, and then throughout her life, she had obeyed and followed the Lord in all of His plans for the world and for all mankind, and thus, she deserved that glory which her Son had prepared for her.

And through her, all of us can see the premonition and the preview for our own fate, that is our salvation and the eternal life we can find only in the Lord alone. Mary showed unto us how all of us ought to believe in the Lord, not just in externals and appearances alone, but also deep in the heart and through concrete actions and devotions, by the outpouring of our love and our care for those who are less fortunate and those who are unloved around us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is what Jesus meant when He told the young man in the Gospel today, of what he needed to do in order to fully follow the Lord in all of His ways. The young man had fulfilled and followed the whole laws of Moses, obeyed the commandments that God had given His people, but yet, he still had that question burning inside of him, as he felt that he still lacked something in him.

And that is because he was still not truly having the Lord inside of him. He has done all the laws and obeyed all the commandments, but do you know that it is possible for one to obey the laws and commandments of God and yet have no God in them? Of course the young man did not do so badly as that. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done exactly that.

These people obeyed the Law and appeared to follow the commandments of God, appearing pious and devout while at the same time having no love for God in their hearts. It is indeed possible for this to happen, as doing them as a routine and doing them genuinely with true love and devotion for God are two sides of the same coin. The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law did theirs as a routine, and also as a means to garner favour and popularity with the people instead of for the Lord as the Law had intended.

And thus, this is where we should look up to Mary as our example. She placed her full trust in the Lord, even when she knew that the path forward for her would not be an easy one. She let the Lord to bring her to where He wanted her to be. And as the mother of Jesus Christ, our Lord, she devoted herself entirely to Him, giving Him the love that all mothers ought to give their children and even more.

Imagine the pain and sorrow she must have faced while following her Son through all the challenges and the difficulties He faced, and more than all these, was when He walked through the way of the Passion, carrying and bearing His cross through Jerusalem and up the hill to Calvary, where He was crucified, suffered and died for the sake of all.

Yet, through all these, Mary remained faithful and stayed truly faithful to the mission which God had entrusted her. And thus, she became our guiding light, the beacon to lead us to her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Through her we can find the best way that leads directly to God and to His salvation. As she was free from the abominable effects of sin, thus it was befitting for her to also escape the sting of sin, that is death.

Yes, we mankind have sinned before God, some small while others had bigger sins. But nevertheless, all of us have disobeyed God and refused to walk in His ways, resulting in sin that leads eventually to death. Yet, our Lord Himself by His glorious resurrection from the dead had shown us that there is a way out of death, that is if we are all faithful to God, and this is affirmed further by the example of Mary, who was brought into the heavenly glory, free from sin.

By sharing in the death of our Lord Jesus Christ through baptism, all of us have been freed from the taint of our original sins. And if we are to believe in Him with all of our heart and devote ourselves completely to Him, then we too shall share the joy of Mary, the joy of the Assumption, as the Lord Himself has promised that all of His faithful ones will not suffer eternal death, but instead receive the eternal life and glory promised to all of the holy people of God, to be forever with Him in heaven.

May the Lord help us, through the guidance and the intercession of His blessed mother Mary, the role model that He had set up for us, so that through her we may be better able to find our way to Him, and thus receive the eternal life and inheritance He has allotted for us all. May God bless us all, and let us all ask the Blessed Virgin Mary, assumed in glory to heaven, to pray for us all at all times. Amen.

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Monday, 15 August 2016 : Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White (Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary)

Matthew 19 : 16-22

At that time, it was then that a young man approached Jesus and asked, “Master, what good work must I do to receive eternal life?” He answered, “Why do you ask Me about what is good? One only is good. If you want to enter eternal life, keep the commandments.”

The young man said, “Which commandments?” Jesus replied, “Do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honour your father and mother; and love your neighbour as yourself.”

The young man said to Him, “I have kept all these commandments. What is still lacking?” Jesus answered, “If you wish to be perfect, go and sell all that you possess and give the money to the poor, and you will become the owner of a treasure in heaven. Then come back and follow Me.”

On hearing this answer, the young man went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth.