Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 65 : 8-9, 16-17, 20
Praise our God, o nations, let the sound of His praise be heard, for He has preserved us among the living and kept our feet from stumbling.
All you who fear God, come and listen; let me tell you what He has done. I cried aloud to Him, extolling Him with my tongue.
May God be blessed! He has not rejected my prayer; nor withheld His love from me.
Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 8 : 26-40
An Angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south towards the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert road.” So he set out and it happened that an Ethiopian was passing along that way. He was an official in charge of the treasury of the queen of the Ethiopians; he had come on pilgrimage to Jerusalem and was on his way home. He was sitting in his carriage and reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit said to Philip, “Go and catch up with that carriage.” So Philip ran up and heard the man reading the prophet Isaiah; and he asked, “Do you really understand what you are reading?” The Ethiopian replied, “How can I, unless someone explains it to me?” He then invited Philip to get in and sit beside him.
This was the passage of Scripture he was reading : He was led like a sheep to be slaughtered; like a lamb that is dumb before the shearer, He did not open His mouth. He was humbled and deprived of His rights. Who can speak of His descendants? For He was uprooted from the earth.
The official asked Philip, “Tell me, please, does the prophet speak of himself or of Someone else?” Then Philip began to tell him the Good News of Jesus, using this text of Scripture as his starting point. As they travelled down the road they came to a place where there was some water. Then the Ethiopian official said, “Look, here is water; what is to keep me from being baptised?”
And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Then he ordered the carriage to stop; both Philip and the Ethiopian went down into the water and Philip baptised him. When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away. The Ethiopian saw him no more, but he continued on his way full of joy.
Philip found himself at Azotus, and he went about announcing the Good News in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded again that as we rejoice and celebrate Our Lord’s glorious Resurrection this season and time of Easter, we must always keep our focus in the Lord and trust in Him, regardless of whatever trials, challenges and hardships that we may have to encounter in our journey of faith and life as Christians. Our holy predecessors have shown us both the sufferings that they had to endure amidst their faithful lives of service to God, and at the same time, also the dedication and actions which they had undertaken in living their lives and missions throughout their lives, in fulfilling what the Lord had entrusted to each and every one of them. We should do well to heed their examples and learn from them.
In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles of the moment after the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the very first martyr of the Church, which story we heard for the past few days. At that time, persecutions and hardships began to build up against the early Christian community and faithful, led by a particular Saul of Tarsus, a young Pharisee and member of the Jewish community who was overzealous and misled in his efforts and drive to destroy the Church and the Christian faith. We heard how this young man persecuted the early Christians with often brutal and wicked methods, seeking the destruction of lives of Christians, and all those suspected of having sympathy or belief in the Risen Lord. They were persecuted by the actions of Saul, who made it really difficult for all those Christian believers. This is the same person who would later on be known as Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, prior to his conversion.
But at the same time, in the same passage we heard how the disciples of the Lord still continued their works and mission regardless. St. Philip, one of the Twelve Apostles went to the region of Samaria, proclaiming the Good News of God and His salvation, performing miracles and wonders, which resulted in continuous growth of the Church and the community of believers in various places despite the trials and challenges facing the Church at that time. The Lord was with His Church and those who were faithful to Him, guiding and strengthening them with His guidance and Holy Spirit. Through this, the Lord had helped the Apostles and the other disciples in showing the truth and revelation about His salvation to many more people.
It is an important reminder for all of us that we should not allow ourselves to be swayed or dissuaded by the many temptations and hardships we may face amidst our journey of faith and life as Christians. The Lord will always be by our side and He will always give us the guidance and strength so that whatever difficulties and hardships we face, we may be able to endure them, and like those Apostles, the other disciples such as St. Stephen, even in suffering and martyrdom, they would glorify the Lord by their lives and examples. As such, through them, we may hopefully be more encouraged to live our lives ever more worthily in the manner that Our Lord Himself and His disciples and followers themselves have shown us. Through us and our works, we can bring God’s salvation to more and more people.
Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard the continuation of the moment when the Lord told the assembled people of the truth of Himself as the Bread of Life, the One Who has brought new life and existence to everyone in this world by His coming, His entry into this world. This was also a foreshadowing and revelation of what He Himself would experience in the midst of fulfilling and completing the plans which the Lord had prepared for our salvation. Through His Crucifixion, His suffering of the Cross and His sacrifice, as He allowed Himself to be emptied of all glory and power, and was subjected to the ultimate punishment and humiliation, He has made Himself available to everyone, by the giving and sharing of His Most Precious Body, as well as His Most Precious Blood, shared to us through the Sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist in the Church, through the Holy Mass.
This is why all of us as Christians truly believe in the Real Presence of God in the Holy Eucharist, of the Lord Himself Who has given us all His Body to eat and His Blood to drink, and just as the Lord has told all the people there, that all who partake of the Body and Blood of Christ, the Bread of Life, they shall live forever, and shall receive the fullness of God’s grace at the appointed time. This is what we are assured of, brothers and sisters in Christ, as long as we receive Him, in His Body and Blood, worthily and properly, we shall receive the fullness of God’s grace, love and blessings, as He comes into us, dwelling within us, and through Him we shall be strengthened and empowered to do all the things which He had entrusted to us, like how the Apostles and the many other disciples of the Lord had continued carrying out His missions faithfully.
However, we must also be wary, as if we do not receive Him worthily, then we shall be judged by that, and this happens if we do not treat our own bodies, our souls and our whole beings, the Temples of God’s Holy Presence, His dwelling place and the Temple of the Holy Spirit with proper respect and honour that they deserve. This is why we are all reminded that we should distance ourselves from the corruptions of worldly desires, greed and ambitions, all the vile things and wickedness present all around us, which can lead us into our downfall, if we allow them to corrupt and turn us away from the path of the Lord. We should always focus our attention and gaze always upon the Lord, through Whom we shall receive justification and liberation from all the darkness and the stranglehold of sin and evil. Regardless of the trials and challenges that we may have to face, we should always keep our focus on the Lord, as always.
May the Risen Lord be with us always, and may He continue to strengthen and guide us in our journey of faith and life, so that by His blessings and power, we may continue the good works which the Apostles and disciples of the Lord, and His whole Church throughout time and history had done, for the benefit and salvation of countless souls. Let us all be the good role models and inspirations for one another, in helping everyone to come ever closer to the light of God, His truth and grace, by our exemplary living, our every words, actions and deeds that are filled with true faith and dedication to the Lord. May He continue to bless our Easter journey and our struggles, in showing His truth and light to the world. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
John 6 : 35-40
At that time, Jesus said to the people, “I am the Bread of Life; whoever comes to Me shall never be hungry, and whoever believes in Me shall never be thirsty. Nevertheless, as I said, you refuse to believe, even when you have seen. Yet all those whom the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me, I shall not turn away. For I have come from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of the One Who sent Me.”
“And the will of Him Who sent Me is that I lose nothing of what He has given Me, but instead that I raise it up on the last day. This is the will of the Father, that whoever sees the Son and believes in Him shall live eternal life; and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 65 : 1-3a, 4-5, 6-7a
Shout with joy to God, all you on earth; sing to the glory of His Name; proclaim His glorious praise. Say to God, “How great are Your deeds!”
All the earth bows down to You, making music, in praise of You, singing in honour of Your Name. Come, and see God’s wonders; His deeds, awesome for humans.
He has turned the sea into dry land, and the river was crossed on foot. Let us, therefore, rejoice in Him. He rules by His might forever.
Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 8 : 1b-8
This was the beginning of a great persecution against the Church in Jerusalem. All, except the Apostles, were scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. Saul, meanwhile, was trying to destroy the Church. He entered house after house and dragged off men and women, and had them put in jail.
At the same time, those who were scattered went about, preaching the word. Philip went down to a town of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. All the people paid close attention to what Philip said as they listened to him, and saw the miraculous signs that he did. For, in cases of possession, the unclean spirits came out shrieking loudly. Many people who were paralysed or crippled, were healed. So there was great joy in the town.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all presented with the continuation of the story of the martyrdom of the very first martyr of the Church, namely that of St. Stephen the protomartyr, and we heard how this faithful man of God had to endure the persecutions, stubborn rejection and refusal by all the enemies of the Lord in hardening their hearts and in stubbornly refusing to embrace God’s truth and Good News in the person of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. We also heard the reminders of the Lord Who is our Bread of Life, the One and only Source of our Hope and Life, the One Whom we should focus our attention and efforts upon. This reminds us that as long as we centre our lives upon the Lord, then we shall have nothing to worry about, and we should not be concerned about how we will turn out to be, because the Lord Himself is with us, guiding us and strengthening us.
In our first reading today, as mentioned, we heard the continuation of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, after he had spoken courageously and fearlessly before all the assembled people who were all against him. Those people had hardened and closed their hearts and minds against the Lord and His words, and even though St. Stephen had spoken with great wisdom and eloquence, explaining to them in vain about the works of the Lord in His salvation of the whole world. St. Stephen spoke at length about how God had been with His people, guiding and empowering them, despite their many rebellions and refusals to follow Him faithfully. God continued to patiently lead them by hand through His many prophets, messengers and appointed leaders, who helped them all to remain faithful to Him, and which culminated in the sending and arrival of His own Beloved Son, the One to be the Saviour of all.
Yet, as St. Stephen pointed out, the people had rejected the great grace of God, His patient love and salvation, persecuting the very One Whom God had sent to help and save them. They crucified the Lord, persecuted His servants and disciples, and tried to stop the works of God being done, harassing the disciples at every turn of the way, like what they had done with St. Stephen himself. Yet, the Lord was still being patient with the people, and through St. Stephen, despite seemingly futile, He was still trying to reach out to them and convince them to believe in Him. This did not happen though, and those people persecuted St. Stephen, whom they punished and stoned to death, a punishment that was reserved for blasphemers and sinners. Yet, despite being the righteous one, St. Stephen, like that of the Lord Himself before him, forgave all of his persecutors and murderers.
In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the beginning of the Lord’s discourse of the Bread of Life, as He described how the ancestors of the people to whom He had been sent to, the Israelites of the time of the Exodus, received the heavenly bread, known as the manna, that God provided to the Israelites for the entirety of the forty years period when they were journeying from Egypt to the Promised Land, including the entire time that they were sojourning in the desert as a chastisement and consequence of their rebelliousness and lack of faith. Yet, despite all the evils and wickedness that the people had done, God still ultimately loved them and cared for them, and hence, He still fed them and gave them the bread from Heaven itself. This came up after the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand men, in which the Lord miraculously fed the many multitudes of people with unending supply of food.
Thus, yet again, we can see the great and enduring love of God, in His perseverance and persistence to love each and every one of us, reaching out to us sinners, despite us having repeatedly disobeyed Him, disregarded His Law and commandments, refusing to believe in His truth and love. He still sent to us His only begotten Son, the One and only Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of Man, Who has come into our midst, manifesting perfectly the love of God in the flesh, becoming approachable and accessible to us, bridging the gap between God and all of us, a gap created by our disobedience and sins. Through His loving sacrifice on the Cross, Christ has not only bridged the gap that once existed between us and God, but through the breaking of His Body and the outpouring of His Blood, He has shared with us the Bread of Life and the Blood that sanctifies us, sealing the New and Eternal Covenant between us and God.
Through what we have heard in our Scripture readings today, we are all reminded that each and every one of us should always first of all be grateful because God has always been so kind, patient and loving towards us despite our many disobedient actions and sins, and despite our frequent refusal to follow Him and His path. God has always patiently reached out to us and embraced us all, again and again, that while we may fall from time to time due to our faults, mistakes and frailty, our inability to resist the temptations of sin, but as our loving Father, God has continuously and persistently led us all to enter into His loving embrace, guiding us and showing the way for us to follow so that we may find the right path towards Him and His salvation, and that we may no longer be lost to Him.
And then, we are also reminded that we have to be ever courageous and committed as the holy people of God, not to be easily swayed by the temptations of the world, by the many pressures, trials and challenges present all around us. All those things may lead us to give up on our efforts and struggles to do God’s will, but as St. Stephen has shown us, through his fearless efforts and his perseverance despite the many trials and oppositions he faced, all of us should also be strengthened and encouraged in our own lives and dedication as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people. We cannot be idle and ignorant of our calling and missions as those whom God had called and chosen. To each one of us God has entrusted the responsibilities and the missions to proclaim His truth and salvation to the nations.
The question now is, what are we then going to do in fulfilling our missions and calling in life? Are we going to embrace God’s call and follow Him in His path, doing what He has called on us to do, so that in each and every moments of our lives we will continue to live our lives with the right actions and convictions, with the strong and enduring desire to walk in God’s path without losing focus and hope on His promises and truth. Let us all ever be worthy of God in all things, and do our best so that our every actions, words and deeds, our whole lives may glorify the Lord, now and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
John 6 : 30-35
At that time, the Jews said to Jesus, “Show us miraculous signs, that we may see and believe You. What sign do You perform? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert; as Scripture says : They were given bread from heaven to eat.”
Jesus then said to them, “Truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven. My Father gives you the true Bread from heaven. The Bread God gives is the One Who comes from heaven and gives life to the world.” And they said to Him, “Give us this bread always.”
Jesus said to them, “I am the Bread of Life; whoever comes to Me shall never be hungry, and whoever believes in Me shall never be thirsty.”
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 30 : 3cd-4, 6ab and 7b-8a, 17 and 21ab
Be a Rock of refuge for me, a Fortress for my safety. For You are my Rock and my Stronghold, lead me for Your Name’s sake.
Into Your hands I commend my spirit; but I put all my trust in the Lord. I will rejoice and be glad in Your love, for You have seen my affliction.
Make Your face shine upon Your servant; save me in Your love. In the shelter of Your presence You hide them from human wiles; You keep them in Your dwelling.
Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 7 : 51 – Acts 8 : 1a
Stephen said to the Council, “But you are a stubborn people, you hardened your hearts and closed your ears. You have always resisted the Holy Spirit just as your fathers did. Was there a prophet whom your ancestors did not persecute? They killed those who announced the coming of the Just One Whom you have now betrayed and murdered, you who received the Law through the Angels but did not fulfil it.”
When the Council heard the reproach Stephen made against them, they were enraged and they gnashed their teeth against him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus at God’s right hand, so he declared : “I see the heavens open and the Son of Man at the right hand of God.”
But they shouted and covered their ears with their hands and rushed together upon him. They brought him out of the city and stoned him, and the witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen prayed saying : “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Then he knelt down and said in a loud voice : “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he died. Saul was there, approving his murder. This was the beginning of a great persecution against the Church in Jerusalem.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 