Thursday

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Thursday, 12 November 2026 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the Scriptures, we are all presented with the matter of the coming of the kingdom of God into this world, and how it is actually already happening to us all even as we have experienced it all these time, all these while. We must not see God’s kingdom as something that is disconnected from the present life we have today, as it is definitely very tempting for us to think of that God’s kingdom has yet to come to us, while the truth is that the kingdom of God has actually been amongst us all these times. Yes, brothers and sisters, the fact is that we are already part of this blessed kingdom of God, in the Church and our Christian communities we have all around us, in which we participate daily and at all times.

In our first reading today, we heard the account from the Epistle of St. Paul to the other disciple of the Lord named Philemon. In that account, we heard St. Paul telling Philemon that he was sending him one of his godsons, Onesimus, to accompany him and the other faithful, in the ministry and mission entrusted to them all in the Church of God. At that time, St. Paul himself was likely suffering in prison after he was arrested due to the many challenges and trials that he had to undergo throughout his ministry and missionary journeys. Yet, St. Paul faced it all with faith and devotion in God, entrusting himself completely in the hands of the Lord, and not fearing the sufferings, consequences and hardships that he had to endure, because he truly cared for the needs of his fellow brethren, to whom God had sent him to as a minister of His Good News and truth.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the encounter between the Lord and some Pharisees who questioned Him regarding when the kingdom of God would come. And we must understand that at the time, the most popular idea and expectation among the people about the coming of the Messiah and God’s salvation was that they expected that the Messiah or the Saviour would be the Son and Heir of David, to restore the old glory of the kingdom of Israel, of the days of David and Solomon, the greatest kings of Israel and those moments when all the people of Israel were still united as one kingdom and one people, and before they were torn apart by internal strife and conflicts that eventually brought down the kingdom of Israel.

Hence, back then, the common interpretation and understanding of the nature of the coming of the Messiah was that this Messiah would lead the people of God in liberating their homeland from the rule by the Romans and other foreigners who had then imposed their rule, power and sovereignty over the Jewish people. Hence, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who disagreed with the Lord and saw His actions as against what they believed in, their ideals of what the Messiah would do and who this Messiah would be. To them, the Lord Jesus could not have been the Messiah because He did not fit their ideal and stereotype of the Messiah of the people of God. Yet, in their pride and ego, they had failed to realise that it was their arrogance, presumptions and mistaken ideals that had become serious obstacles preventing them from finding their way towards God’s truth.

The Lord has shown them and all of us that the kingdom of God was not what the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law and the other people often thought it would be. Instead, the kingdom of God does not equate the monarchy of the Israelites of the old days, or anything like that. Instead, the kingdom of God is the establishment of God’s reign on this world, which has actually happened when the Lord Jesus came to this world and established His Church. Through the Church, the Lord made His kingdom tangible in this world, in our own communities and societies, wherever we are. By His New Covenant, sealed through His suffering and death on the Cross, He broke the barriers separating us from God, and hence brought us much closer to His heavenly glory and joy.

The kingdom of God therefore has existed in our midst, within the Church and our own various groups and communities. What we must then realise is how we manifest this kingdom of God in our own families, in our circle of friends and relatives, loved ones and others, even in our workplaces and elsewhere. It is here then that as Christians, each one of us are charged and entrusted with the task of making the kingdom of God being fully present and tangible in our world today, wherever we are and in whatever we are doing in life. And we have to be genuine in living our lives with faith, as members of God’s Church and as parts of His living and present Kingdom here in this world, already manifested and tangible in our midst, one where all the faithful people of God are filled with love for both God and for one another.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Josaphat Kuntsevych, a faithful and holy servant of God, who as bishop of the Church was truly a courageous and dedicated servant of God, being martyred for his faith against all those who refused to listen to reason and embrace the true teachings of the Church and the unity of the Church against all the divisions that had brought about much harm to the Church and the faithful. St. Josaphat was one of the Eastern Orthodox bishops in Ruthenia, what is today part of Poland and Ukraine, where he was one of the leaders of the faithful people of God. Amidst the efforts of the time in that region to reconcile the divided Church and the Christian communities between those who are in communion to the Pope and those who have separated themselves from the communion of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, St. Josaphat rose to prominence in his efforts to bridge this gap.

St. Josaphat Kuntsevych was one of the bishops who accepted the agreements of reunion between the Churches, which was also known as the Union of Brest, about four centuries ago. He worked hard to bridge the differences between all those who supported and those who refused to embrace the efforts at reunification and reconciliation between the faithful members of the Body of Christ, the Church. But he still faced a lot of opposition and rejection from many of those who refused to listen to reason and truth, and in the end, he was martyred and suffered a terrible fate as those who opposed him and his efforts at reunion of the churches mobbed and attacked him, and brutally murdered him. Nonetheless, the inspiration and courageous examples of St. Josaphat Kuntsevych continues to inspire many people even to this day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have discerned and discussed from the passages of the Sacred Scriptures and as we have heard from the life and inspiring examples of St. Josaphat Kuntsevych, let us all therefore be resolved to live a good and worthy life in the manner that God has called us to in each and every moments, opportunities and occasions throughout our lives. Let us all be the shining examples and role models for one another in faith in all things, and help one another to remain firmly faithful to the Lord, to be truly committed in actions and deeds, to be courageous despite all the challenges and difficulties, trials and hardships we may encounter in our journey in life, to bring to full realisation and manifestation the Kingdom of God in this world, through the Church, through our communities and our own faithful lives. May God continue to bless us all, and may He empower us all to remain ever always in His loving presence, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 12 November 2026 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Luke 17 : 20-25

At that time, the Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God was to come. He answered, “The kingdom of God is not like something you can observe, and say of it, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘See, there it is!’ for the kingdom of God is within you.”

And Jesus said to His disciples, “The time is at hand, when you will long to see one of the glorious days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. Then people will tell you, ‘Look there! Look here!’ Do not go with them, do not follow them. As lightning flashes from one end of the sky to the other, so will it be with the Son of Man; but first He must suffer many things, and be rejected by this generation.”

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Thursday, 12 November 2026 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 145 : 6c-7, 8-9a, 9bc-10

The Lord is forever faithful; He gives justice to the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free.

The Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord straightens the bent. The Lord loves the virtuous, but He brings to ruin the way of the wicked. The Lord protects the stranger.

The Lord sustains the widow and the orphan. The Lord will reign forever, your God, o Zion, from generation to generation. Alleluia!

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Thursday, 12 November 2026 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Philemon 7-20

I had great satisfaction and comfort on hearing of your charity, because the hearts of the saints have been cheered by you, brother. Because of this, although in Christ I have the freedom to command what you should do, yet I prefer to request you in love. The one talking is Paul, the old man, now prisoner for Christ. And my request is on behalf of Onesimus, whose father I have become while I was in prison.

This Onesimus has not been helpful to you, but now he will be helpful both to you and to me. In returning him to you, I am sending you my own heart. I would have liked to keep him at my side, to serve me on your behalf while I am in prison for the Gospel, but I did not want to do anything without your agreement, nor impose a good deed upon you without your free consent.

Perhaps Onesimus has been parted from you for a while so that you may have him back forever, no longer as a slave, but better than a slave. For he is very dear brother to me, and he will be even dearer to you. And so, because of our friendship, receive him as if he were I myself.

And if he has caused any harm, or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, write this and sign it with my own hand : I will pay it…. without further mention of your debt to me, which is you yourself. So, my brother, please do me this favour for the Lord’s sake. Give me this comfort in Christ.

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Thursday, 5 November 2026 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, each one of us are reminded that as Christians we must not have the elitist attitude thinking that we alone are righteous and that others are less deserving of God’s salvation than us. We must not think that we are more worthy than others just because we follow His Law and commandments, and then ridicule and ostracise, being prejudiced or biased against others, or worse still, blaming others just because we think that they have not been faithful to God the way that we have been faithful. Instead, first and foremost we must remember that it is our Christian calling and obligation in fact to not only love the Lord with all of our hearts and might, but also to love our fellow brothers and sisters, without prejudice, in the same way.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in Philippi, we heard the Apostle speaking to the people regarding the matter of circumcision and the faithful. In order to understand the significance of this discourse, we have to understand that back then there were significant friction between the members of the Christian communities including that in Philippi, between the new converts from among the Jewish diaspora as well as the new converts from among the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people like the Romans, the Greek and many others. The Christian faith and truths attracted both the Jewish people and the Gentiles alike, and the differences in their thoughts and practices bring about this discord between the faithful.

That is because according to the practices of the old Law as revealed through Moses and as shown in the Old Testament, the Jewish people had to undergo circumcision or the removal of the skin from the genital of their males, in order for them to be part of the Jewish community. This Law had been preserved from the days of Moses onwards to this day. However, the crux of the matter as highlighted by St. Paul, was the overemphasis on these external and outward practices and which also became sort of badge of pride and honour by the adherents of its practices which resulted in the people of God being elitist and exclusivist in their way of life and in how they interacted with others who do not belong to their group, or those whom they deemed as inferior and less worthy than they were.

The Pharisees, to which St. Paul himself belonged to, and which the Apostle highlighted in that very occasion, was in particular the most to blame for this attitude. For back then, many among the Pharisees were very proud of their observance of the Law of God, their piety and dedication. They looked down on others and made great show of their faith practices and piety. They imposed the very strict interpretation and excesses of the additions to the Law of God over the centuries to the whole people. Their prejudice against people who were sick and diseased, possessed, and others like the tax collectors and the prostitutes, were carried on to some among the early Christian converts originating from among the Jewish people, some of them like St. Paul himself, were Pharisees.

Therefore, there were disagreements and even attempts by those who supported the Pharisees and wanted the whole Church to adopt the very strict interpretation of the Law and all of its immense number of rules and regulations, imposing them even to the Gentiles who converted to the Christian faith. That would have made it very difficult then for the Gentiles to adopt the Christian faith, as back then, some of the Jewish practices and customs were viewed with disdain and even with outright disgust by the Romans, the Greeks and the other Gentiles. In particular, this involved the practice of male circumcision, which the Gentiles found abhorrent. That is why, people like St. Paul, a former Pharisee, wanted this practice to be made completely optional for the whole Church.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus as He confronted the Pharisees and the elders who were very critical at the Lord’s warm treatment of those whom the they considered as sinners and unclean like the tax collectors, as He went even to their place to have a meal with them. Such an action would have been unthinkable for the Pharisees and the elders who wanted to have nothing to do at all with those pagans and all those whom they deemed to be inferior, less worthy and wicked. This was exactly why St. Paul warned the faithful against these attitudes that are actually incompatible with all of us being Christians. A Christian should not be prejudiced, exclusivist and self-righteous in their attitudes.

On the contrary, we have to remember what the Lord told all those assembled, using the parable of the lost sheep and the lost silver coin. When He mentioned how the shepherd would go out forth to look for the one lost sheep despite the ninety-nine other sheep that were safe and sound, and how the woman would put all her effort to find her missing silver coin piece despite the other pieces that she had with her, it showed us all the kind of love and the effort with which God had done for our sake, out of His ever enduring and ever great love for us all. Through His generous love, He has reached out to us again and again, all of us sinners who are undeserving of His love, and yet, despite our rebelliousness and stubbornness, God continued to reach out to us nonetheless, with love. And that is what we as Christians are expected to do as well with our lives.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore do our very best to embody our Christian faith in each and every one of our actions and deeds, in our every words and interactions, so that by everything that we say and do, we will truly show what the Lord our God Himself has shown unto us, in His Son’s incarnation and all the love that He has made manifest before us, the most generous and genuine love He has shown in His teachings, His outreach to the least fortunate and those who have been rejected and ostracised by the society, and embodied in the parable of the lost sheep and the lost coin which we have just heard, culminating in His ultimate, most loving sacrifice on the Cross. Let us all continue to do our best therefore to glorify our Lord through our own devotion, life full of faith and love, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 5 November 2026 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 15 : 1-10

At that time, tax collectors and sinners were seeking the company of Jesus, all of them eager to hear what He had to say. But the Pharisees and the scribes frowned at this, muttering, “This Man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus told them this parable :

“Who among you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, will not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and seek the lost one till he finds it? And finding it, will he not joyfully carry it home on his shoulders? Then he will call his friends and neighbours together, and say, ‘Celebrate with me, for I have found my lost sheep!’ I tell you, in the same way, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner, than over ninety-nine decent people, who do not need to repent.”

“What woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one, will not light a lamp, and sweep the house in a thorough search, till she finds the lost coin? And finding it, she will call her friends and neighbours, and say, ‘Celebrate with me, for I have found the silver coin I lost!’ I tell you, in the same way, there is rejoicing among the Angels of God over one repentant sinner.”

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Thursday, 5 November 2026 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 104 : 2-3, 4-5, 6-7

Sing to the Lord, sing His praise, proclaim all His wondrous deeds. Glory in His holy Name; let those who seek the Lord rejoice.

Look to the Lord and be strong; seek His face always. Remember His wonderful works, His miracles and His judgments.

You descendants of His servant Abraham, you sons of Jacob, His chosen ones! He is the Lord our God; His judgments reach the whole world.

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Thursday, 5 November 2026 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Philippians 3 : 3-8a

We are the true circumcised people since we serve according to the Spirit of God, and our confidence is in Christ Jesus rather than in our merits. I myself do not lack those human qualities in which people have confidence. If some of them seem to be accredited with such qualities, how much more am I!

I was circumcised when eight days old. I was born of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin : I am a Hebrew, born of Hebrews. With regard to the Law, I am a Pharisee, and such was my zeal for the Law that I persecuted the Church. As for being righteous according to the Law, I was blameless.

But once I found Christ, all those things that I might have considered as profit, I reckoned as loss. Still more, everything seems to me as nothing compared with the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord.

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Thursday, 29 October 2026 : 30th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are reminded of the need for all of us to remain ever vigilant and prepared in the constant spiritual warfare and battlefield that is this world ever raging all around us. We have to be prepared lest the forces of the evil ones and those wicked forces arrayed against us succeed in tearing us away apart from the Lord and His path towards salvation. That is why we have to be always proactive in living our lives with faith just as our Scripture passages have reminded us today, so that we do not end up falling into the wrong paths in life. We have to continue to hold fast to our faith in the Lord at all times.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Apostle St. Paul to the faithful people of God in Ephesus, reminding all of them to put on the whole armour of God, the armour of fidelity and strength of God, allowing God to guide and protect them in their journey of faith through life. He reminded them of the spiritual warfare and struggles that are always happening all around them, which they need to be truly vigilant for, more than they should fear the persecution of the authorities of this world. That is because ultimately, there is nothing that the worldly authorities can do to them beyond harming their physical bodies and existence, but the same could not be said of those who threatened the souls of the faithful, those who sought to subvert us and drag us into eternity in damnation and destruction.

That is because those who seek the destruction of the souls of mankind are plenty, the evil forces of Satan and all of his wicked allies and other demonic forces, and unlike those of the world, there is little that we can do to resist them by ourselves, as they are always ready all around is, ready to surround us and to pounce on us whenever we falter or are unprepared against their onslaught. The Lord has warned us all against these attacks, and we should be ready to resist them, with the Lord by our side. But we need to have faith in the Lord and put our trust in Him, and give our best to live our lives in accordance to His path of truth. And it is by devoting ourselves wholeheartedly to God that we may find our path towards the eternal glory in God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord speaking to His people and the disciples and some of the Pharisees who were giving Him some warning for the fact that king Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee wanted to kill Him. The Lord highlighted that despite all of that, He would still do what He has been called to do in His mission. The Lord would perform His mission, reaching out to His flock and to all the people, ministering to them, healing their sick and casting out demons from them even amidst all the challenges and trials that He and His disciples had to go through.

The Lord lamented then on the sad state of how the people those to whom the Lord had come to, rejected Him and refused to listen to Him and accept Him, just in the way their ancestors had persecuted and rejected the many messengers, prophets and servants of God sent to them earlier. Yet, He persisted on and continued to do the will of His heavenly Father, showing us the example of what we ourselves as Christians ought to be doing in our own lives, in doing God’s will, resisting and refusing the temptations to give in to the pressures of the world and give up our faith and struggle to be ever worthy of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, thus we are reminded that we must not let our guard down and continue to do our best to fulfil what God has called on all of us to do in our lives as Christians. Just as the Lord Jesus Himself has shown us, each and every one of us should strive to do our best in loving God and in doing His will, and continue to live worthily and justly, filled with Christian truths and virtues in life. We should be exemplary in our every words, deeds and actions so that in all that we do, we will always be sources of inspiration and strength for our fellow brothers and sisters, that we may encourage one another to remain faithful to God and to do God’s will at all times.

Let us all hence listen to the Lord’s call and hearken to His will, to embrace whatever missions He entrust to us to do, in making good use of our gifts, talents, abilities and opportunities that we may indeed strong in our faith, in wearing the fullness of the ‘armour of God’ just as St. Paul told the faithful members of the Church in Ephesus. Let us fully entrust ourselves and our families, our loved ones and our every actions, efforts and endeavours to the Lord, and let us fully allow Him to lead and guide us down the right path, opening our hearts and minds that He may lead us and help to guide us, and correct us whenever we falter and enter into the wrong paths in life.

May God be with us always, and may He continue to protect us from the attacks of the evil ones, of those who seek our ruin and destruction. May God empower us all with the courage and strength to persevere through the many challenges and trials we may have to face in remaining truly faithful to Him as Christians, as those whom the Lord Himself had called to be His disciples, and to be the faithful witnesses of His truth and love in our world today. May all of us be ever faithful and be good role models and beacons of Christ’s light and truth to all the people, of all the nations, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 29 October 2026 : 30th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 13 : 31-35

At that time, some Pharisees came to Jesus and gave Him this warning, “Leave this place and go on Your way, for Herod wants to kill You.”

Jesus said to them, “Go and give that fox My answer : ‘I drive out demons, and I heal today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish My course!’ Nevertheless, I must go on My way today, and tomorrow, and for a little longer; for it would not be fitting for a Prophet to be killed outside Jerusalem.”

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you slay the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often have I tried to bring together your children, as a bird gathers her young under her wings, but you refused! From now on, you will be left with your Temple, and you will no longer see Me, until the time when you will say, ‘Blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord.'”