Third Sunday of Easter

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Monday, 5 May 2025 : 3rd Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we all listened to words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded of the nature of our faith as Christians, and the reality of how we may have to face challenges, difficulties, trials and obstacles in our paths as we continue moving forward in life as disciples and followers of God. It is inevitable that we will encounter and may have to suffer from all those things, but we must always remember that God is always by our side, providing for us and journeying with us, and by His grace and strength, we can persevere and remain strong despite those many trials and challenges, and we must not easily lose faith and sight on what is truly important in our lives, that is to continue to remain faithful to God and to be good role models and inspirations for everyone around us by our own commitment to live our lives with genuine love for God.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which we heard of the ministry of St. Stephen, who was one of the seven original holy deacons of the Church selected through the guidance of the Holy Spirit to minister to the faithful people of God. St. Stephen was preaching about the Lord and did wonderful deeds among the people of God through the power of God and the Holy Spirit that had filled Him. And this brought about opposition from the members of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council. That was why they arrested St. Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin and their supporters, with false witnesses and accusations meant to bring him down and accusing him of blasphemy before all the assembly.

However as we heard, St. Stephen, full of power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, responded with great wisdom and intellect, and none of those false witnesses and accusations could be levied against him. No matter what happened, St. Stephen remained firm in his commitment to the Lord and in his courageous defence of his faith. He was standing up against the whole might of the Sanhedrin, filled with many people who were against him and his beliefs in the Lord, and who were angry and hostile against him and what he had preached and presented to them. But St. Stephen trusted fully in the Lord and allowed Him to guide him in his actions and words, that he would not abandon his faith in the Lord or proclaim falsehoods against Him just so that he could evade trouble and persecution.

This was eventually followed by the martyrdom of St. Stephen, who was stoned to death by the angry members of the Sanhedrin and the mob that was gathered there. But St. Stephen in his great faith to the very end trusted in the Lord, and he even prayed to the Lord to forgive all those who have brought those sufferings and martyrdom upon him, much as the Lord Jesus Himself had done from His Cross. He showed all of us the great example of faith and inspiration, in what we ourselves should do in order to follow the Lord as His faithful and worthy disciples and followers. As Christians, all of us should always be filled with the courage to proclaim our faith in the Lord and be ready to dedicate ourselves to Him even amidst the many challenges and hardships in life.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the story of the moment when the Lord was followed by many people who came to seek Him after He had performed the wondrous miracle of the feeding of the five thousand people and more with merely just five loaves of bread and two fishes. And the Lord told them that they were looking for Him because of the food and the wondrous things that He had provided them, and this must be understood as our natural desire to seek something that pleases us like food, pleasures of the world and other forms of satisfaction. Thus, what the Lord was telling the people was that their faith in Him was still being mostly superficial in nature, as if those incentives and good things were to disappear, then they would likely abandon and leave Him behind.

Instead the Lord was calling on all of them to seek not the food and satisfaction of the world, but lasting sustenance and true joy that can only be found in the Lord alone. The Lord wanted all of them to listen to Him and to find the path to true satisfaction and joy in God, which they can find through true obedience and commitment to God, by genuine faith and trust in Him. The Lord wanted them all to grow in true faith and desire to seek God and not just seeking superficial pleasures in food and sustenance, good things and other forms of comforts of the world. This is what will lead the people to the true path towards salvation and liberation from all of their shackles of sin and evil. The Lord showed them all the love of God manifested before them, and calling on all of them to be faithful and loving towards God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore we are called and reminded to put our complete faith and trust in the Lord, to come towards Him with great commitment and dedication. We are reminded that when we face hardships and challenges in life because of our faith or due to other reasons, like St. Stephen and the many other saints and martyrs have shown us, we must remain firm in our resolve to follow the Lord and to keep our faith in Him. We should not allow ourselves to be easily swayed by the temptations of comfort and worldly desires, and be pressured by the coercions and threats levied by those who seek to make us conform to the ways of the world and to abandon our faith in God. Let our faith and perseverance be good examples and inspirations to all around us.

May our Risen Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, Our Lord continue to strengthen and inspire us all to live our lives each day and in every moments full of confidence and trust in Him. May He grant us the courage to continue becoming good role models, examples and inspirations to our fellow brothers and sisters around us. May God be with us always and may He bless our every good efforts and endeavours, works and all other things that we do for His greater glory. Amen.

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Monday, 5 May 2025 : 3rd Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 6 : 22-29

At that time, the next day after Jesus fed the five thousand men, the people, who had stayed on the other side, realised that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with His disciples; but rather, the disciples had gone away alone.

Bigger boats from Tiberias came near the place where all these people had eaten the bread. When they saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found Him on the other side of the lake, they asked Him, “Master, when did You come here?”

Jesus answered, “Truly, I say to you, you look for Me, not because of the signs which you have seen, but because you ate bread and were satisfied. Work then, not for perishable food, but for the lasting food which gives eternal life. The Son of Man will give it to you, for He is the One on Whom the Father has put His mark.”

Then the Jews asked Him, “What shall we do? What are the works that God wants us to do?” And Jesus answered them, “The work God wants is this : that you believe in the One Whom God has sent.”

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Monday, 5 May 2025 : 3rd Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 118 : 23-24, 26-27, 29-30

Although princes conspire against me, Your servant will observe Your decrees. Your laws are my delight, my counsellors who uphold me.

When I explained my ways, You responded; instruct me then in Your precepts. Explain to me all Your ordinances, and I will meditate on Your wondrous deeds.

Keep me away from deceitful paths; be gracious and teach me Your law. I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart upon Your laws.

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Monday, 5 May 2025 : 3rd Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 6 : 8-15

Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Some persons then came forward, who belonged to the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia. They argued with Stephen but they could not match the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke.

As they were unable to face the truth, they bribed some men to say, ‘We heard him speak against Moses and against God.’ So they stirred up the people, the elders and the teachers of the Law; they took him by surprise, seized him and brought him before the Council.

Then they produced false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking against our Holy Place and the Law. We even heard him say that Jesus the Nazarean will destroy our Holy Place and change the customs which Moses handed down to us.” And all who sat in the Council fixed their eyes on him, and his face appeared to them like the face of an Angel.

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Sunday, 4 May 2025 : Third Sunday of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, the Third Sunday of Easter, all of us are reminded of the great faith and courage that the Lord’s Holy Apostles had shown amidst the challenges, oppressions and trials that they were facing, because they truly believed in the Lord and His truth, and having witnessed His great wonders and signs, especially that of the Resurrection, having seen the Risen Lord Himself in person, interacting and spending time with Him, and knowing that everything did indeed happen just as the Lord Himself has predicted it all. That was why, strengthened further by the Holy Spirit, all of them courageously stood up for their faith in the Risen Lord, even amidst the opposition and threats from the members of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council that opposed them.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which the Apostles were arrested and brought before the members of the Sanhedrin led by the High Priest, who questioned them on their works and actions, in which they continued to teach and preach in the Name of the Lord Jesus, the One Who had risen from the dead, and yet, such facts were denied by the Sanhedrin. At that time, the High Priest and the members of the Sanhedrin, who earlier on had accused the Lord Himself of blasphemy and treason against Caesar, such that He was condemned to death by Pontius Pilate, wanted to keep silent on the news on the Resurrection, as if such news were to spread among the people, that would have led to the total loss of their leadership and credibility as the leaders of the people of God.

But even when the Apostles, led by St. Peter, were threatened and coerced not to teach and preach, or carry out any more works in the Name of the Risen Lord, they all resoundedly refused to do so, as they committed themselves to the mission which they had been entrusted with by the Lord, and they, led by St. Peter spoke courageously before the High Priest and the other members of the Sanhedrin, that they would rather obey God rather than to obey the orders of men. That is also because the orders of the Sanhedrin, led by the High Priest, while being the legitimate religious authority of that time, directly contradicted the mission and orders which the Lord Himself directly told them all to do, to proclaim His truth and Good News, His Resurrection and salvation ton all the people of all the whole world.

That was why the Apostles and many other disciples of the Lord, and later on, their successors, to whom they had passed on their faith and accounts of the Lord’s Resurrection and other events and teachings, continued to labour hard in their various ministries and they did their best to proclaim the Lord to everyone whom they encountered in their lives. They have believed in what they had witnessed and seen for themselves, and those who have not seen the Lord and His works directly, His miracles and Resurrection were inspired by the examples of their predecessors, their courage and commitment to proclaim the Lord faithfully even to the cost of their own comforts and safety in life, as many among them were persecuted, oppressed and tortured, and many were martyred for their faith.

In our second reading this Sunday from the Book of Revelations of St. John the Apostle, we then heard of the heavenly vision of the Apostle St. John which he received while he was being exiled in the Island of Patmos, where he saw the vision of countless millions and multitudes of people who have been found worthy by the Lord in Heaven, where they sing of the glory of God for eternity and rejoice in the true happiness and joy that can be found in the Lord alone. And all those things had been made possible by the sacrifice and loving offering of the Lamb of God, that is Christ our Lord and Saviour, Whose selfless and perfect offering that He had made on the Altar of His Cross had brought about liberation and healing to all of us sinners who have been afflicted and made to suffer due to our sins and wickedness.

We are all reminded that at the end of our earthly journey, we shall be reunited with God, and if we are truly faithful to Him, then we shall indeed share in the glory of His saints and the joy of the Angels, as what St. John himself had witnessed in his vision. We should not be worried or fearful of what may happen if we continue to commit ourselves in this path towards God. The ever faithful Lord will bring us all to His Presence and we shall share in the glory of the Apostles. Even if we should suffer persecutions and hardships in this life, nothing can truly separate us from the love and grace of God, and in the end, by our faith and commitment to God we will be vindicated and share in the eternity of true joy that God has promised and reassured all of us.

Then, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, we heard of the passage from the Gospel of St. John in which the account of the moment when the Risen Lord appeared to His disciples in Galilee was recounted to us. In that occasion, we heard how the Lord appeared to the disciples at the shores of the lake where they had all been out fishing throughout the night without having any success. And when the Lord told the disciples to do as He said, and they immediately caught so many fishes, St. John was the first to recognise the Lord, but St. Peter was the one who immediately went down to the water and swim to seek the Lord. And afterwards, after having witnessed the Risen Lord Himself, and experiencing having eaten with Him, knowing that He was truly risen from the dead, then the Risen Lord had a time with St. Peter and conversed with him.

In that conversation, it was evident that this was a reversal of what had happened at the moment of the Lord’s Passion, when St. Peter denied knowing the Lord three times. Despite having been denied by Peter not just once but thrice, this did not stop the Lord from continuing to love him, and that was why He wanted to extend that opportunity for reconciliation and reaffirmation of the love that he has for Him, by asking Peter not just once but also thrice, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter himself must have realised what the Lord had done, and he must have felt guilty and sad hearing those questions, but he courageously confessed his undying love for the Lord, all three times before Him, committing himself wholly to the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through what we have heard from our Scripture passages this Sunday, let us all therefore remind ourselves of the need for each one of us as Christians to be truly committed to the Lord, and to keep our faith and trust in Him, in His Resurrection and all the promises and reassurances that He has provided to us. The Lord has always been loving towards us, forgiving and compassionate, and it is time for us to embrace His love and mercy, to be truly committed to Him in everything that we do in this life. Let us all be ever more faithful and exemplary in how we live our lives each day and every moments so that in our every actions and words, our deeds and interactions with one another we will always show the love of God in all things.

May the Risen Lord continue to help and guide us in our journey through life in faith, and may He continue to empower each and every one of us such that we may do our best in every situations in life, in being good and faithful disciples of His, in doing our best to glorify His Name and proclaim His Good News through our own lives and examples. May God bless us always in everything that we say and do, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 4 May 2025 : Third Sunday of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 21 : 1-19

At that time, Jesus revealed Himself to the disciples by the Lake of Tiberias. He appeared to them in this way : Simon Peter, Thomas who was called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two other disciples were together; and Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They replied, “We will come with you.” And they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the shore, but the disciples did not know it was Jesus. Jesus called out, “Friends, have you anything to eat?” They answered, “Nothing.” Then He said to them, “Throw the net on the right side of the boat and you will find something.” When they had lowered the net, they were not able to pull it because of the great number of fish.

Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” At these words, “It is the Lord!” Simon Peter put on his clothes, for he was stripped for work, and jumped into the water. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish; they were not far from land, about a hundred metres. When they landed, they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”

So Simon Peter climbed into the boat and pulled the net to shore. It was full of big fish – one hundred and fifty-three – but, in spite of this, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” And not one of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” for they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish. This was the third time that Jesus revealed Himself to His disciples after rising from the dead.

After they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these do?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.” And Jesus said, “Feed My lambs.” A second time Jesus said to him, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” And Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Look after My sheep.” And a third time He said to him, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?”

Peter was saddened because Jesus asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You.” Jesus then said, “Feed My sheep! Truly, I say to you, when you were young, you put on your belt and walked where you liked. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will put a belt around you, and lead you where you do not wish to go.”

Jesus said this to make known the kind of death by which Peter was to glorify God. And He added, “Follow Me!”

Alternative reading (shorter version)

John 21 : 1-14

At that time, Jesus revealed Himself to the disciples by the Lake of Tiberias. He appeared to them in this way : Simon Peter, Thomas who was called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two other disciples were together; and Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They replied, “We will come with you.” And they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the shore, but the disciples did not know it was Jesus. Jesus called out, “Friends, have you anything to eat?” They answered, “Nothing.” Then He said to them, “Throw the net on the right side of the boat and you will find something.” When they had lowered the net, they were not able to pull it because of the great number of fish.

Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” At these words, “It is the Lord!” Simon Peter put on his clothes, for he was stripped for work, and jumped into the water. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish; they were not far from land, about a hundred metres. When they landed, they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”

So Simon Peter climbed into the boat and pulled the net to shore. It was full of big fish – one hundred and fifty-three – but, in spite of this, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” And not one of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” for they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish. This was the third time that Jesus revealed Himself to His disciples after rising from the dead.

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Sunday, 4 May 2025 : Third Sunday of Easter (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Revelations 5 : 11-14

I went on looking; I heard the noise of a multitude of Angels, gathered around the Throne, the living creatures and the elders, numbering millions of millions, crying out with a loud voice : “Worthy is the Lamb, Who was slain, to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honour, glory and praise.”

Then, I heard the voice of the whole universe, heaven, earth, sea, and the place of the dead; every creature cried out : “To Him Who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb, be praise, honour, glory and power, forever and ever.” And the four living creatures said, “Amen,” while the elders bowed down and worshipped.

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Sunday, 4 May 2025 : Third Sunday of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 29 : 2 and 4, 5-6, 11-12a and 13b

I extol You, o Lord, for You have rescued me; my enemies will not gloat over me.

O Lord, You have brought me up from the grave, You gave me life when I was going to the pit. Sing to the Lord, o you His saints, give thanks and praise to His holy Name. For His anger lasts but a little while, and His kindness all through life. Weeping may tarry for the night, but rejoicing comes with the dawn.

Hear, o Lord, and have mercy on me; O Lord, be my Protector. But now, You have turned my mourning into rejoicing; You have taken off my sackcloth and wrapped me in the garments of gladness. And so my soul, no longer silent, now sings praise without ceasing. O Lord my God, forever will I give You thanks.

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Sunday, 4 May 2025 : Third Sunday of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 5 : 27b-32, 40b-41

The High Priest questioned the Apostles, “We gave you strict orders not to preach such a Saviour; but you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching; and you intend charging us with the killing of this Man.”

To this, Peter and the Apostles replied, “Better for us to obey God, rather than any human authority! The God of our ancestors raised Jesus, Whom you killed by hanging Him on a wooden post. God set Him at His right hand, as Leader and Saviour, to grant repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses to all these things, as well as the Holy Spirit, Whom God has given to those who obey Him.”

And the Council ordered them not to speak again of Jesus, the Saviour. Then they set them free. The Apostles went out from the Council, rejoicing that they were considered worthy to suffer disgrace for the sake of the Name.

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Saturday, 20 April 2024 : 3rd Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are all reminded that as the disciples and followers of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour of all, each and every one of us must always be ready to stand by our faith in Him and to do whatever it is that He has entrusted to all of us. As those whom the Lord had entrusted with His truth, Good News and revelation, and as the ones that He had called and chosen from this world, we are all expected to live our lives truly worthily of Him, and to do our part as the members of this same Body of Christ, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. To His Church, the Lord had given the mission to proclaim this salvation and liberation which He Himself had brought into our midst, so that more and more people may come to know Him and seek to embrace His love and mercy, that everyone may be gathered together in His Presence.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which the Apostles continued their ministry and works, as the persecutions and hardships, trials and challenges against the Church abated at that time with the conversion of Saul the Pharisee, and with the end of his so-called ‘witch hunt’ and efforts to eradicate the early Christians and the Church, the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council lost their greatest champion. As mentioned, the Church had a moment of peace and reprieve from the persecutions and challenges it faced, and the growth of the Church continued just as it had been during the times of troubles. The Lord continued to guide His disciples to go forth and proclaim His truth and Good News to more and more people. The Apostles were going round to minister to the faithful in various places.

And it was during some of these mission trips that we heard in today’s passage, how St. Peter performed a great miracle by the power of God when he visited the faithful community in the city of Lydda, where he healed a man named Aeneas who was paralysed, and upon seeing the miraculous healing of the man from his illness, many more people came to believe in the Lord and embraced the Christian faith. Then, we heard after that of the illness and death that claimed a certain Tabitha, a good and faithful woman, who had been well-known in the community for her righteousness and virtues. St. Peter came to her place, prayed over her and raised her up from the dead, by the Name and authority of the Risen Lord Himself, showing to everyone how the Lord truly is the Lord and Master over life and death, and has authority over all things. Even more people came to believe in the Lord by these miracles and events, and the Church continued to grow rapidly.

This is a reminder that God has always been with His Church, and while many of its members might have to suffer because of the opposition that many in the world held stubbornly against the Lord, and just as the Lord Himself had faced bitter persecutions and hardships, thus the Church would have to face sufferings and difficulties, challenges and trials as part of its journey. God has always guided all the faithful towards Himself, and as they all carried their crosses in life, they were carrying their crosses with the Lord. And with every actions and deeds which they had done, those disciples of the Lord had proclaimed the truth and the revelation of His salvation, and more people came to be part of the Church, just as the popular saying goes, that the ‘blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians’, with more and more people being convinced to follow the Lord by the exemplary courage of the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the conclusion of the discourse of the Bread of Life by the Lord to the people which we have heard in the past week or so. In that discourse, we heard how the Lord highlighted His role as the Bread of Life, the Heavenly Bread Who would share His own Most Precious Body and Blood with everyone, so that they all may have eternal and new life, new existence full of grace with Him. But as we heard, the people refused to listen to the Lord and hardened their hearts and minds, saying to the Lord that how can He, as a mere Man, could give to them His own Body and Blood for them to eat and drink. In fact some of them if not many among them were likely disgusted at those words, but they failed to understand what the Lord meant, and they did not have faith in Him, choosing to use their own limited understanding and appreciation of the matter for them to judge Him instead.

This was why as mentioned in that same Gospel passage, many of the Lord’s disciples stopped following Him and abandoned Him. They refused to accept those teachings which they found difficult to follow or to understand using their understanding and appreciation. But those who were closest to Him, like the Twelve and some others stayed by His side and continued to follow Him despite the reservations and the questions that they themselves might have also had in their hearts and minds. It was these same truths which they later on proclaimed courageously and fearlessly among the people of God, like what St. Peter the Apostles, the other Apostles and disciples had done as they ministered to the people, performing the same miracles and wonders that the Lord had done in their midst. They trusted in the Lord and allowed Him to lead them in their mission and calling, to glorify the Lord by their lives and works.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore this is why all of us are also called and reminded to put our faith and trust completely in the Lord. Each and every one of us should continue to embrace Him and His love, and strive to do whatever we can such that by our commitment and dedication, we may truly be the good role models and examples for one another, and be the shining beacons and light of God’s truth, illuminating the path for many around us, so that they may come to believe in the Lord as well. This is why each and every one of us must always be truly sincere and genuine in how we follow the Lord, in each and every moments of our lives, in our every actions so that by all of those we may help many more people to come to the Lord. It is through our actions, words and deeds that the light of God, His truth and Good News are made manifest and real to many, who experienced God through us and our lives.

May the Risen Lord continue to help and lead us in our journey of faith and life, so that as we continue to persevere and endure amidst all the challenges and trials that we may face, and that we may continue to obey Him and do His will in our world today, being active part of the Church’s mission in proclaiming the Good News and Christ’s salvation in our world today. May the Lord continue to bless our every efforts and endeavours, our every actions and works, our interactions and all that we do to proclaim His Name and His truth to all the people around us. May He remain with us always, now and forevermore. Amen.