Thursday

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Thursday, 28 June 2018 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

2 Kings 24 : 8-17

Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he succeeded his father, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. His mother was Nehushta, daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. Jehoiachin treated YHVH badly, as his father had done.

At that time, the officials of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came to attack Jerusalem, surrounding the city. Nebuchadnezzar came while the city was being besieged by his men. Jehoiachin, king of Judah, surrendered, together with his mother, his servants, his leaders and the palace officials. It was the eighth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar.

Nebuchadnezzar captured them and he took away the treasures of the House of YHVH and of the king’s house. He also destroyed all the objects of gold which Solomon, king of Israel, had made for the Sanctuary of YHVH. So the word YHVH had spoken, was fulfilled.

Nebuchadnezzar carried off into exile all the leaders and prominent men, the blacksmiths and locksmiths, all the men of valour fit for war. A total of ten thousand were exiled to Babylon. Only the poorest sector of the population was left. Nebuchadnezzar also carried away Jehoiachin, with his mother, his wives, the ministers of the palace, and the prominent men of the land.

So all the prominent people, numbering seven thousand, the blacksmiths, numbering a thousand, and all the men fit for war were deported to Babylon by the king of Babylon. He made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king of Jerusalem, in place of Jehoiachin. And he changed his name to Zedekiah.

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Thursday, 21 June 2018 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the story of the prophet Elijah being taken up into heaven, which we have also heard yesterday in the account taken from the Book of Kings. Today it is the prophet Sirach’s recollection of the events surrounding the last moments of the prophet Elijah on earth, before he was taken up on a flaming chariot into heaven.

The many works of the prophet Elijah was highlighted, how he had faced up even the powerful but wicked kings of Israel, Ahab and his sons, and his wife, Jezebel. He had to face many difficulties and challenges throughout his journey and mission, and he had to flee into the desert for the safety of his life. But God was with him, and he was well taken care of in the desert, and in the hands of the widow of Zarephath.

Yet, as mentioned by the prophet Sirach, despite the many successes Elijah had performed, in how he helped to bring down the wicked kings of Israel of the house of Ahab, and also ended the threat of foreign nations on Israel, and in anointing his successor, Elisha, to carry on his works, but many of the people of God still remained in sin and rebellion against God.

That is why the Lord sent His own Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to bring into the world the completion of the works which He has begun in His prophets and messengers. He delivered into the world the message of love from His Father, and then, in today’s Gospel passage, we heard of Him teaching the disciples and the people how to pray to God, in the Lord’s Prayer.

We may be wondering what is the significance of the prayer that the Lord taught His disciples to our first reading and also to our own daily lives. However, first of all, we must understand and realise that prayer is central to all Christians’ life. Without prayer, and meaningful prayer that is, our Christian faith and life is likely empty and meaningless. This is what many of us have failed to realise.

That is because we do not truly understand what prayer is. Prayer is not just series of words and supplications, litanies of words to be uttered and said in churches and in our own homes. If we do not mean what we say in our prayers, and if we do not understand prayer and how we can use it appropriately, then we will end up having faith like the Israelites during the time of Elijah, and the faith of the Pharisees.

The Lord’s Prayer shows us what true prayer is all about. First of all, a prayer is a means of communication between us and God, where we open ourselves, our hearts and minds to God speaking to us, just as we also speak to Him. And prayer is not about making demands to God, as what we often would have done. Instead, it is about thanking God and praising Him for all that He has done for us, in times of good and in bad times.

Prayer is also about knowing what God wants us to do in our lives, by listening to His will being spoken in the depth and the silence of our hearts and minds. But too often, we are too preoccupied and busied by the many concerns and worldly things we have in life, in our career, pursuit for money, wealth, power, fame, influence and others, that we have not been able to listen to God speaking to us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in that case, let us all follow the examples set by a holy servant of God, St. Aloysius Gonzaga, whose feast we celebrate today. St. Aloysius Gonzaga was born as the eldest son in the influential Gonzaga family, where he was destined to inherit his father’s great wealth and influence. He was brought up with the best training and education to be successful in the world.

However, he experienced many of the excesses and wickedness of the Renaissance era lifestyle, and went through a conversion experience to the faith, especially under the guidance of St. Charles Borromeo, then Cardinal Archbishop of Milan. He went through a life of prayer and chastity, and desired even to become a priest and missionary. His father in particular was furious at the decision taken up by St. Aloysius Gonzaga.

But St. Aloysius Gonzaga eventually had his way, and renouncing all worldly titles, inheritance and rights, he entered the Jesuit novitiate and began his study to become a Jesuit. He was well known for his great piety and asceticism, and his prayerful life was an inspiration to many others in the community. And one day, when a deadly epidemic came to the city, St. Aloysius Gonzaga insisted to help out with the victims, and he fell sick from the epidemic, and died at a young age.

Yet, as we can see, St. Aloysius Gonzaga has shown us what being a true Christian is all about. He gave up everything for God, and followed God’s calling in his life. He devoted himself through deep and living prayer life, and loved his fellow men, caring for others who were sick and dying, at the cost of his own life. He should be our inspiration, brothers and sisters, in how we should live our own lives.

Now, let us pray, that God will continue to inflame in us the love for Him, and the sincere and strong faith, just as what St. Aloysius Gonzaga has shown in his own life. Let us all devote ourselves more faithfully to the Lord from now on, and turn towards Him with all our hearts, minds and love Him with all our might. Amen.

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Thursday, 21 June 2018 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 6 : 7-15

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “When you pray, do not use a lot of words, as the pagans do; for they believe that, the more they say, the more chance they have of being heard. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need, even before you ask Him.”

“This, then, is how you should pray : Our Father in heaven, holy be Your Name, Your kingdom, come, Your will, be done on earth, as in heaven. Give us today, our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive those who are in debt to us.”

“Do not bring us to the test, but deliver us from the evil one. If you forgive others their wrongdoings, your Father in heaven will also forgive yours. If you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive you.”

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Thursday, 21 June 2018 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 96 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7

YHVH reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the distant islands be glad. Clouds and darkness surround Him; justice and right, are His throne.

Fire goes before Him, burning His foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world; the earth watches and trembles.

The mountains melt like wax before YHVH, the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His justice, all peoples see His glory.

Shame on worshippers of idols, on those proud of their worthless images. Let all spirits bow before Him.

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Thursday, 21 June 2018 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Sirach 48 : 1-15 (Greek Septuagint – Sirach 48 : 1-14)

Then came the prophet Elijah, like a fire, his words a burning torch. He brought a famine on the people and in his zealous love had them reduced in number. Speaking in the Name of the Lord he closed down the heavens, and on three occasions called down fire.

How marvellous you were, Elijah, in your wondrous deeds! Who could ever boast of being your equal? By the word of the Most High you brought a dead man back to life; you brought kings to destruction and thrust famous men from their beds. You heard a rebuke at Sinai and sentences of punishment at Horeb; you anointed kings to be avengers and prophets to succeed you.

You were taken up by a whirlwind of flames in a chariot drawn by fiery horses. It was written that you should be the one to calm God’s anger in the future, before it broke out in fury, to turn the hearts of fathers to their sons and to restore the tribes of Jacob.

Happy are those who will see you and those who die in love, for we too shall live. Such was Elijah, taken up in a whirlwind, and Elisha was filled with his spirit. During his life no leader could shake him, no one dominated him. Nothing was too difficult for him and even in death his body prophesied. In life he worked wonders, in death his deeds were amazing.

Despite all this, the people were not converted and did not turn away from sin; not until they were deported far from their country and scattered over the earth.

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Thursday, 14 June 2018 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the word of the Lord Jesus, reminding us that as Christians, each and every one of us ought to remember our obligation to obey and follow the way of the Lord as He had taught us through His Church. The Lord reminded us that we must be loving towards one another, and we must not hold any grudges or hatred towards our brethren.

The reality is that, many of us have grudges against each other, especially when we have conflicting desires and wishes, when our human ambitions clash, and we do not want to give in to each other. This is exactly why we bicker and fight, even within our families and our closest relationships. If we think that close friendship and family relationship prevent us from having all these, I am sure that all of us who fought our close friends and families, our spouses, children or parents will be able to realise the truth.

In the first reading today, we heard about how Elijah spoke to king Ahab of Israel about God Who finally was going to give rain to the land after three long years of absence, and the rain did come as He had promised. In the first place, the rain was held from the land of Israel as punishment for the people’s sins, which were caused by the sins of their king, Ahab and his wife, Jezebel.

Both of them had acted wickedly and committed sins abhorrent to God, by acting tyrannically and abusing the power and authority which had been given to them. One particular occasion was the murder of the vineyard owner Naboth, who refused to sell his vineyard, part of his ancestral land and rightful possession to the king. The king desired the vineyard as he wanted to turn it into his own vegetable farm.

The king was very angry and was emotionally affected after that refusal from Naboth, but his queen, Jezebel, inflamed his heart and encouraged him to act tyrannically by reminding him that as king, he could do whatever he wanted, and he could have whatever he wished to have. To that extent, they arranged a sham trial where Naboth was wrongly accused of blasphemy against God, and was stoned to death.

That was how power, human greed and ambition led man to sin against God. And unless we make the effort to resist the temptation of those worldly desires and power, we will end up falling into sin as king Ahab had done, and in doing so, he led many more people down the path of sin. And that is also because he had no faith in God, and God was not at the centre of his life, but rather himself and his selfish ambitions.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are called to a holier life in our daily lives. And what does this mean? It means that as the Lord Jesus Himself had said, that as Christians, we must strive to be exemplary in our actions, forgiving those who have hurt us and not to hold grudges against each other. We are called to love one another, and even those who have not loved us or even hated us and persecuted us.

Remember that the Lord asked us to pray for our enemies and those who persecuted us? This is what we must then do, or else we risk holding grudges and hatred against each other, which eventually leads to sin. Is this what we want to happen to us? Surely, it is not. The Lord Jesus Himself forgave His enemies from the cross, all those who have condemned Him to death. If He has done so, then why can’t we?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore devote ourselves, our effort and attention to be ever more faithful to the Lord, our God, by loving more generously, and placing Him at the centre of our lives. May God bless us all and may He be with us, all the days of our lives. Amen.

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Thursday, 14 June 2018 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 5 : 20-26

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.”

“Whoever insults a brother or sister deserves to be brought before the council. Whoever calls a brother or a sister, ‘Fool!’ deserves to be thrown into the fire of hell. So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with him, and then come back and offer your gift to God.”

“Do not forget this : be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.”

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Thursday, 14 June 2018 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 64 : 10abcd, 10e-11, 12-13

You water the land and care for it, enriching it with natural resources. God’s stream is filled with water.

So You prepare the earth to give us its fruits. You drench the furrows in the land and level the ridges; You soften the soil with showers and bless its crops.

You crown the year with Your goodness; abundance flows everywhere. The deserts have become pasture land, the hills are clothed with gladness.

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Thursday, 14 June 2018 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Kings 18 : 41-46

Elijah then said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for the sound of rain is rushing in.” So Ahab went up to eat and drink. Elijah, in the meantime, went to the top of Carmel, bowed to the ground and put his face between his knees.

Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look in the direction of the sea.” The man went up, looked, and said, “There is nothing.” Then Elijah said, “Go again;” and seven times he went. At the seventh time, he perceived a little cloud, the size of a man’s hand, rising out of the sea. Elijah told him, “Go, tell Ahab : Prepare your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.”

A little later the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and a strong rain fell. Ahab was riding on his way to Jezreel. As for Elijah, the hand of YHVH was on him, and tucking his cloak in his belt, he ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

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Thursday, 7 June 2018 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the Word of God speaking to us about what true faith and dedication to the Lord is like. It is basically, as we have heard from the Scriptures, to obey God is first and foremost about love. We cannot be true disciples of the Lord without love, and if we do not love God with all of our might, we cannot indeed call ourselves as Christians.

This is what the Lord expects from us, to be loving just as He is loving. First of all, of course we must love Him first, for if we do not love God, then indeed, we do not truly know what love is. All love ultimately came from God, and whenever we love, we have shown the same love which came from God, and which He Himself had shown us. Yes, God has shown us His great love, that, as St. John wrote in his Gospel, He sent us His most beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

In his Epistle to St. Timothy, St. Paul wrote that even when we are unfaithful to God, God will always remain faithful, as He cannot deny Himself. What does this mean? It means that, even though we have sinned against God and done things which were unworthy and wicked in His presence, but God would still continue to love us regardless, and He will still want each and every one of us to be reconciled with Him.

That is why He sent us His own Son, Jesus Christ, to be the One through Whom salvation could come to all of us mankind. We should have merited destruction and annihilation by our disobedience and sins, but God withheld His anger and judgment, and gave us one last hope in Christ. That was just how much God has loved us, that He was willing to give us everything He could, including even to give up His life for us on the cross, that we might live.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the cross itself is a symbol of love, a love that is perfect and selfless, a love that each and every one of us must imitate and have in our own lives. And by looking at the cross itself, we can immediately see what we need to do in our loving relationship with God and with one another, as what the Lord had commanded us to do, and which Our Lord Jesus reiterated in today’s Gospel passage.

There are two most important commandments in the Law, that is first of all, to love the Lord our God with all of our might and abilities, which the cross represents with the vertical bar, leading up from us on earth to heaven, as the Lord Jesus offered Himself up to be the One to bridge the gap between us and God His Father. And thus, through Christ, we have received God’s love, and then we ought to love Him back in the same way.

Then, all of us must also remember to love one another, our fellow men, just as the Lord Jesus extended His love for everyone. He loved even all those who have hated and persecuted Him, and forgave them from the cross, praying to His Father, so as not to account them for the sins they have committed due to their ignorance of the truth. The horizontal bar of the cross reminds us of this obligation, to be bearers of love to one another.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, guided by the love of Christ embodied in the cross, let us all as Christians who believe in Him and His love, be exemplary in our loving attitude towards, first of all, our God, Who loves each and every one of us, and then, towards our fellow brothers and sisters, even to those who have not loved us or treated us badly.

May the Lord be with us all, that we may ever grow further in our faith and in our love, both for Him and for one another. May the cross of Christ be our guide in our lives, so that day after day, we may come to love more generously and more tenderly. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.