Thursday

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Thursday, 11 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, Pope (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard again the reassuring words of the Lord through the Sacred Scriptures in which He continued to strengthen the faith in each and every one of us. During this time and season of Advent, each and every one of us are reminded of the hope that is coming for us from God Himself, all that He has promised to us and which He had made fully accomplished and fulfilled through His own Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Whom He had sent into this world to show unto us the ever wonderful and enduring love which He has always had for every one of us, without exception. 

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Isaiah we heard of the reassuring words of the Lord yet again for His people in which He promised all of them that He would provide for all of them, protect them and give them all His providence and blessings. He would not abandon them or be deaf or blind to their plights, difficulties and hardships. He listened to them and heard their cries for help, and all of these were clear to Him, and He would act in due time, to protect and guide all those who were truly dear and beloved to Him. He is ever faithful to His Covenant and to everything which He has promised and constantly reassured His people with, and therefore, we ourselves, inspired by this great reassurance that God has given to His beloved ones, should be reassured as well.

This Advent, this time of waiting, expectation and preparation for the coming of Our Lord and Saviour should be a time of redirection and rediscovery of ourselves and our faith in God. We should make good use of the time and opportunities that God has provided us such that we may indeed draw ever closer to His presence, embracing His ever patient, wonderful and generous love. We should believe that the Lord can truly provide for us in everything that we need, in reaching out to us whenever we need help and guidance, and in protecting us from harm, and even if we have to suffer challenges, trials and difficulties in our paths, we have to remember and keep in mind that the Lord Himself has gone through even worse sufferings for us. He did all these so that we may have a new hope in Him.

Then, from the Gospel today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Himself speaking about St. John the Baptist, the one who had been sent to prepare His path and coming, and we heard how the Lord praised St. John the Baptist as the greatest one who have ever come from the children of mankind, and yet curiously also less than the least in the kingdom of heaven. We must understand first of all that St. John the Baptist was sent into this world to prepare the coming of the Messiah, the Saviour of the world, and hence he came from before the coming of Christ, representing the last one of the Old Testament, the so-called ‘seal of the Prophets’

Therefore, St. John the Baptist was indeed the greatest of those born under the Old Testament and the old Law, because he alone among all of the Prophets came to witness the Lord and Saviour Himself, and actively worked to prepare His coming into this world. But with the coming of Christ, all of us have been made partakers of His truth and Good News, and we are reminded therefore of just fortunate and blessed all of us are because we have received the assurance and sure evidence of God’s ever enduring love and compassion, all of His kindness, grace and blessings which He has manifested to all of us through none other than Christ, His Beloved and only Begotten Son, born into this world to lead us all into salvation through Him.

Today, we have yet another great servant of God who dedicated his life to Him, and who can also become our role model and inspiration in life. Pope St. Damasus I was the Pope, and therefore leader of the Universal Church during the important years and time of the Church when there were numerous converts and more and more coming to believe in God. At that same time, there were also a lot of divisions and disagreements in the Church, which Pope St. Damasus worked very hard to overcome as the leader of all God’s faithful people. There had been differing ideas and schools of thought at that time, where those different factions and their disagreements threatened to break up the Church unity and the Body of Christ.

Pope St. Damasus himself became Pope during a turbulent time of a succession crisis following the death of the previous reigning Pope due to interference from the secular ruling class and nobles of Rome. There was a contested election and two rival Popes were elected, in a heated campaign before Pope St. Damasus eventually prevailed against his rival. This rival himself belonged to the heretical party, the Arians, who had wrecked a lot of damage and divisions in the Church for many decades up to that time. The Arians had large following and support from the powerful and influential members of the community at the time, and they had even the backing from the Emperor and his nobles, and this made it difficult for the Pope and the Church, but nonetheless this did not discourage Pope St. Damasus I.

Pope St. Damasus was instrumental in leading the charge against the heretics and all of their false teachings, devoting much of his time and efforts to overcome the falsehoods spread by those who claimed to teach the truth of God, but in reality were spreading false ideas. He also helped the creation of the Biblical canon especially in the Western, Latin half of the Church by his works with St. Jerome, whom he tasked with the compilation and the proper translation of the Greek Septuagint Bible into Latin, which would become the renowned Latin Vulgate Bible. Through the many other contributions and great leadership which Pope St. Damasus I had shown and exhibited, 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all continue to put our faith and trust in the Lord, doing our very best so that in everything that we say and do, in our every interactions, good works and efforts, through our every examples in life, we may indeed be ever focused on the Lord at the centre of our lives and existence, and that in what we carry out in our daily actions, we will continue to inspire hope and strength in others who may also face similar struggles in life, especially in the matters of remaining truly faithful and committed to the Lord and His path despite all the hardships, challenges and difficulties that all of us may have to encounter in our daily journeys and in our respective paths in life. We should not be idle but be ever ready to welcome the Lord when He comes again.

May the Lord continue to bless and guide us all in our respective journeys of faith and life, so that as we continue to progress through this time and season of Advent, we will continue to grow ever stronger in faith in God and in our love for Him. May He continue to inspire and guide us in practicing our Christian faith ever more courageously and faithfully in all things. May all of us continue to have a good and fruitful Advent season, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 11 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, Pope (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Matthew 11 : 11-15

At that time, Jesus said to the people, “I tell you this : no one greater than John the Baptist has arisen from among sons of women; and yet, the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven is something to be conquered; and violent men seize it.”

“Up to the time of John, there was only prophesy : all the prophets and the Law. And if you believe Me, John is indeed that Elijah, whose coming was predicted. Let anyone with ears listen!”

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Thursday, 11 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, Pope (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Psalm 144 : 1 and 9, 10-11, 12-13ab

I will extol You, my God and King; I will praise Your Name forever. YHVH is good to everyone; His mercy embraces all His creation.

All Your works will give You thanks; all Your saints, o YHVH, will praise You. They will tell of the glory of Your kingdom; and speak of Your power.

That all may know of Your mighty deeds, Your reign, and its glorious splendour. Your reign is from age to age; Your dominion endures, from generation to generation.

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Thursday, 11 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, Pope (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Isaiah 41 : 13-20

For I, YHVH, your God, take hold of your right hand and say to you : “Fear not, I am your assistance.” Fear not, Jacob, poor worm, and you, people of Israel, so frail. I am your Redeemer, says YHVH, the Holy One of Israel, your Helper.

I will make you a thresher, new and with sharp double teeth : you will thresh hills and mountains, crushing them and reducing them to chaff. You will winnow them, the wind will carry them off and the storm will scatter them. But you will rejoice in YHVH and glory in the Holy One of Israel.

The poor and the afflicted seek water, and find none. Their tongues are parched with thirst. But I, YHVH, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open up streams over the barren heights and let the rivers flow through all the valleys; I will turn the desert into lakes and brooks and the thirsty earth into a land of springs.

I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle and the olive; I will plant in the wasteland fir, cypress and pine – that all may see and know, consider and understand, that the hand of YHVH has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

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Thursday, 4 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded through the words of the Lord as we continue to progress through this season of Advent, the time of spiritual renewal and preparation for the upcoming joyous celebration that we usually have in the upcoming Christmas time and season, that each and every one of us may be truly ready to celebrate it worthily and properly in the manner that we should do it. We should always strive to centre our lives on the Lord, on His truth and love, doing our very best to embody our faith in everything that we say and do. Let this time of Advent be a truly fruitful one, filled with moments that we spend preparing ourselves well in all aspects so that we can indeed celebrate Christmas with the right spirit and joy.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the Lord continued to reassure His beloved people, the Israelites in the southern kingdom of Judah where Isaiah had been sent to minister in, who had been beset by many troubles and challenges, and yet, the Lord would be with them always, and they would not be abandoned even when the people themselves had often abandoned and ignored God and His constant reminders of love and compassion for all of His people. The Lord has always been a source of hope and recourse for the people whenever they faced challenges and trials, and He has sent them help and guidance repeatedly over many years and circumstances. And the Lord reassured His people that He would stand with them even through the most difficult moments.

This would come true very soon indeed in the perspective of the sequence of events that were depicted in the Book of the prophet Isaiah, as a few chapters after what we heard in today’s first reading, where the story of the events surrounding the invasion of Judah by the forces of King Sennacherib of Assyria were recorded, detailing how the Assyrians led by their king came in vast numbers, over a hundred thousand strong to raze and conquer the whole of Judah and besieging its capital city Jerusalem. And if we recall what we have just heard in our first reading today, that was precisely what the Lord had told His people through the prophet Isaiah, and just as He has reassured them, that He would protect them and laid low those who were haughty and proud, the Lord smote down the Assyrians and their king, the latter which had in his great pride and hubris claiming that he would conquer Jerusalem and not even God could stop him.

God sent His mighty Angels to strike upon the armies of the Assyrians, killing most of them through unknown means, but leaving the Assyrian king completely humiliated and shattered, and he had to flee back to his homeland in great shame. Meanwhile, Judah and Jerusalem were rescued and restored, and peace returned to the people of God and their homeland. Hence, we can see clearly here how God had intervened for the sake of those who had been faithful to Him, and that those who have been faithful and committed to God, putting their trust and hope in Him will be vindicated in the end, and no hope in the Lord will come to disappointment, as God is always ever faithful to His Covenant and everything that He has promised to us and reassured us with. This is why we are reminded of this during this time of Advent so that we can continue to grow in faith in the Lord.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus Himself using a parable to highlight to His disciples what it truly means to be HIs disciples and followers, and that is to put themselves in the firm foundation of faith in God and not in all sorts of worldly means and powers, by which many often put their foundations on. He used the comparison between the strong foundation of solid rock upon which if a house were to be built, it can withstand all kind of storms and waves battering it, while those who built up upon the weak foundation of sand would easily have their houses being destroyed and torn down by the forces of nature assailing it because of the lack of that solid foundation.

In the same way therefore, if we all put our trust in our worldly means, matters and our plans and machinations, more than we put our trust and faith in God, then sooner or later we will find ourselves utterly disappointed because in the end, no matter how firm or secure they may be, none of them can truly satisfy us or support us in the manner that God can. Even if we are to face challenges and trials, but with the Lord by our side, even the greatest and hardest challenges can be overcome if we continue to hold strongly and firmly upon the faith that we have in Him. This of course does not mean that we do not do anything and solely trust in God only, but instead, in all that we do, in our every actions, words and deeds, in every moments, everything that we do must always be firmly anchored in our faith and hope in the Lord.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. John Damascene, also known as St. John of Damascus, a renowned monk, priest and theologian, who is honoured as one of the esteemed Doctors of the Church for his may works and contributions. St. John of Damascus was born in a prominent Christian Arab family in part of what is Syria today, which then was under the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate. As he came from a family of officials who were involved in the earlier Byzantine bureaucracy, and then later on the Arabic Umayyad government, St. John was raised up and educated well, and became a well-educated man, serving in the court of the Umayyad Caliph before he became a priest and monk.

St. John of Damascus dedicated his life thereafter to the study of the Christian faith, its theology and mysteries, which he discussed and touched upon in his many writings and works. St. John was also notedly involved in the controversies surrounding the matter of iconoclasm that was then widespread through the Byzantine or the Eastern Roman Empire and the other parts of Christendom. At that time, there were parties and members of the Church and the clergy, with support even from some of the Emperors, who wished to ban the veneration of icons and images, considering them to be un-Christian in nature. This iconoclastic practices were opposed by the Pope and many other members of the clergy and the Church, including that of St. John of Damascus.

St. John of Damascus worked hard against all those who took part and sided in the iconoclastic heresy, and he had to face a lot of hardships in doing so, even to the point of being persecuted, falsely implicated in crimes and suffering from plots against him, that he even had his hand cut off. Miraculously, before the icon of the Theotokos, the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God through his fervent prayers, his hand was restored. St. John remained firm and courageous in his defence of the true faith, despite the trials and challenges against him, and he persevered throughout his life, finally being vindicated and exonerated from all the false accusations against him when the iconoclast heresy was finally overthrown and defeated.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect upon what we have just discussed from the messages of the Sacred Scriptures and also from the life and experiences of St. John of Damascus. Let us all see in what way that we can continue to move forward in life with strong and genuine faith which we all ought to have, doing our very best to care for those whom the Lord has entrusted to us, our beloved and precious ones and all those whom we encounter in our daily and every moments in life. May God be with us always and may He continue to strengthen our faith during this journey throughout this Advent season, that we may continue to grow ever closer to Him, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 4 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Matthew 7 : 21, 24-27

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My heavenly Father. Therefore, anyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts according to them, is like a wise man, who built his house on rock. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded, and the wind blew and struck that house. But it did not collapse, because it was built on rock.”

“But anyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act accordingly, is like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain poured, the rivers flooded, and the wind blew and struck that house; it collapsed, and what a terrible collapse that was!”

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Thursday, 4 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Psalm 117 : 1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a

Alleluia! Give thanks to YHVH, for He is good, His loving kindness endures forever. It is better to take refuge in YHVH than to trust in the help of humans. It is better to take refuge in YHVH than to trust in the might of princes.

Open to me the gates of the Just, and let me enter to give thanks. This is YHVH’s gate, through which the upright enter. I thank You for having answered me, for having rescued me.

Save us, o YHVH, deliver us, o YHVH! Blessed is He Who comes in YHVH’s Name! We praise You from the house of YHVH. YHVH is God; may His light shine upon us.

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Thursday, 4 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Isaiah 26 : 1-6

On that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah : We have a strong city, He Himself has set up walls and fortifications to protect us. Open the gates! Let the righteous nation enter, she who is firm in faithfulness. You keep in perfect place the one of steadfast mind, the one who trusts in You.

Trust in YHVH forever, for YHVH is an everlasting Rock. He brought down those who dwell on high, He laid low the lofty city, He razed it to the ground, levelled it to the dust. Now it is trampled, the poor and the lowly tread upon it.

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Thursday, 27 November 2025 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we continue to be reminded yet again of the challenges, trials and difficulties which we may have to face as those who have been faithful to the Lord and His commandments. Each and every one of us as Christians are reminded of the important obligations and responsibilities which we have been entrusted with, and for which we should always be ready to do our best to proclaim the Lord, His truth and His Good News in our communities and societies today, among our family members and circles of friends both. We are all called in our own unique ways to give our best for the greater glory of God, in everything that we say and do.

In our first reading passage today, taken from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Daniel, we heard of the story of the moment when Daniel, the wise man and servant in the household of the King of Media and Persia, Darius, the one who had overcome and conquered the Babylonians, faced a new trouble in the form of the opposition from the other courtiers and members of the king’s household, those who were jealous of Daniel and his greatness and wisdom. They plotted against Daniel and pressured the king to act against Daniel, by alleging that he was disrespecting the customs and practices of the Persians and the Medians by his faith in God and the differences of his actions and way of life compared to theirs.

That was how eventually Daniel was sent to the lion’s den, where his enemies hope that he would be destroyed and that they would lose their great obstacle and enemy. But Daniel trusted in the Lord wholeheartedly and he did not allow fear and despair to overcome him, and he prayed to God to deliver him from his troubles and his enemies, and indeed, his prayers were heard, and everyone from the king and all of his enemies witnessed how God kept Daniel safe amidst the hungry lions and kept him from being harmed. Meanwhile, his enemies were immediately devoured and destroyed when the king threw them into that same den after he had rescued and brought Daniel out of the den. This is indeed the proof of God’s providence and help for all those who have always trusted in Him and have faith in Him.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we continue to hear as we approach the end of our current liturgical year the eschatological nature of our readings and words of God, reminding us of the coming of tribulations, trials and challenges that will accompany us and our faith in the Lord. Those who continue to be faithful to the Lord will be facing those persecutions and obstacles, and we are reminded henceforth that we should not easily give up the struggle simply because we face those challenges, trials and difficulties, and we should not give in to the temptations of the world, and all the pressures for us to conform to the worldly ways and manners.

The Lord also foretold of everything that would come to happen in the ruin and destruction of Jerusalem, to show that indeed everything that He said would come true, and while the parousia or His Second Coming will still be distant in the future, as it has not even happened today yet, but just as He had predicted the destruction and ruin of Jerusalem and its Temple, therefore, everything will be fulfilled in God’s good time, and He will fulfil all that He has promised to all of us. Each and every one of us are reminded that we should continue to have faith and trust in the Lord despite all the struggles, hardships, all the darkness and trials that we may have to face in our path. God has never abandoned us and He will always provide us for all that we need.

As once Daniel was rescued from the lion’s den and from the hands of his enemies, vindicated and liberated, and as how our many holy and courageous predecessors had been guided by God, even through their great sufferings, that they became great examples and inspiration for everyone around them, and even long after their passing. Many martyrs and holy servants of God have become great role models in inspiring many who came after them, and their examples and courage still echo even to this very day. Can we be those same examples and inspirations to everyone around us, to our family members, friends and all those whom we encounter in each and every moments in our lives? That is what we are being called to do as Christians, brothers and sisters.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore continue to trust in the Lord and in His Providence, never giving up on Him just as He Himself has always been patient in guiding us and strengthening us all throughout our way despite us having been very stubborn at times and despite us having frequently disobeyed and abandoned Him especially when things are good for us, whenever we forget about Him and focusing rather on our worldly desires and ambitions. That is why we have been reminded today through these readings from the Sacred Scriptures such that we may indeed realise just how fortunate we are to have been loved so wonderfully by God and how we should never take this for granted. Instead, we should continue to be faithful to Him and do our best in our lives to glorify Him at all times.

May the Lord continue to strengthen us in our faith and in our resolve to live our lives faithfully according to His ways and teachings. May He continue to guide us all in our journey so that each and every one of us may be ever stronger in our commitment to bring glory to His Name, that in our every actions, efforts, good works and endeavours, we will continue to be good and worthy role models in all things, in all that we say and do. May God bless our every good works and inspire us all with His Wisdom and strength that we may always be faithful to Him, and put our trust in Him, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 27 November 2025 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 21 : 20-28

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that the time has come when it will be reduced to a wasteland. If you are in Judea, flee to the mountains! If you are in Jerusalem, leave! If you are outside the city, do not enter it!”

“For these will be the days of its punishment, and all that was announced in the Scriptures will be fulfilled. How hard will it be for pregnant women, and for mothers with babies at the breast! For a great calamity will come upon the land, and wrath upon this people. They will be put to death by the sword, or taken as slaves to other nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled upon by the pagans, until the time of the pagans is fulfilled.”

“Then there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth anguish of nations, perplexed when they hear the roaring of the sea and its waves. People will faint with fear at the mere thought of what is to come upon the world, for the forces of the universe will be shaken. Then, at that time, they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”

“So, when you see things begin to happen, stand erect and lift up your heads, for your deliverance is drawing near.”