Thursday

by

Thursday, 17 March 2016 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 17 : 3-9

Abram fell face down and God said to him, “This is My covenant with you : you will be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer will you be called Abram, but Abraham, because I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you more and more famous; I will multiply your descendants; nations shall spring from you, kings shall be among your descendants.”

“And I will establish a covenant, an everlasting covenant between Myself and you and your descendants after you; from now on I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you, for generations to come. I will give to you and your descendants after you the land you are living in, all the lands of Canaan, as an everlasting possession and I will be the God of your race.”

God said to Abraham, “For your part, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you, generation after generation.”

by

Thursday, 10 March 2016 : 4th Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about God Who was angry at His people when they betrayed Him and went for the worship of the pagan idol, in the form of a golden calf, in a story that all of us are surely familiar with, as we must have heard it during our catechism classes. We heard how God became angry and how He punished them for their wrongdoings, by destroying those who have led the people to sin, and those who have refused to repent and follow God.

But many of us would not know or remember the part saying that Moses pleaded with God to spare His people from His anger and from the destruction He intended for them because of their sins. Many of us would not remember how Moses pleaded before God to think of the covenant which He had established with His faithful servants, and to remember of the great love which He had for all of mankind, His beloved creations.

In this story, we see the same narrative of sin and redemption which we often hear during this season of Lent, a time of penitence and repentance, where we are all called to change our wicked and mistaken ways, and to turn away from all these, following once again the path towards God our Lord and Saviour. In the story which we heard today, we hear a very important message for us all, that there is hope for us as long as we are willing to repent and commit ourselves to God.

But it will not be an easy path for us to take, for the path towards redemption and salvation in God is likely to be filled with challenges and obstacles, and Satan who is trying to tempt and lure us away from God, will certainly not remain passive or quiet while we are being drawn into the Lord’s salvation. He is actively trying to pull us away from God and to bring us down into the deepest depths of hell.

Shall we then follow his path or the path of the Lord? Satan’s path is apparently easier for us, more enticing, and more pleasurable, and indeed, more exciting than the path that God offers us, but at the end of that path is a great cliff, from which if we fall, we can never rise back up. On the other hand, God’s path, is a path of challenges, difficulties and also filled with many sufferings, and yet at the end of the journey is our eternal rewards in God.

The people of God in the desert chose the easy way out, when they thought that Moses and God had abandoned them after he ascended for forty days at Mount Horeb. They were too quickly tempted by the temptations of their flesh, and they did not have patience in them. They placed their trust in the gold and in all the wealth that they received when they left Egypt. The love for God was not in their hearts.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is a reminder to all of us, that through this season of Lent, and indeed throughout our lives, we should endeavour to resist the temptations of our flesh, and abandon the false idols that had kept us away from truly being devoted and faithful servants of the Lord our God. Are these false idols the same as the idols of Israel at that time? Maybe, and maybe not.

If we are talking about idols from stone, wood or anything else carved in the images of animals, beasts, and other worldly things, then we may not have these common in our world today, but if we talk about the false idols and gods of money, of wealth and human desires, then we can see indeed, how these, the pursuits of wealth, the greed of men for more and more, are keeping us away from God.

Let us all therefore learn and strive to keep faithfully God’s laws and commandments, and let us be disciplined in our lives, so that we may resist all the temptations of the devil and all of his seducers, and remain true in love to the Lord our God. May God bless us all, now and forever. Amen.

by

Thursday, 10 March 2016 : 4th Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 5 : 31-47

At that time, Jesus spoke to the Jews, “If I bore witness to Myself, My testimony would be worthless. But Another One is bearing witness to Me, and I know that His testimony is true when He bears witness to Me. John also bore witness to the truth when you sent messengers to him, but I do not seek such human testimony; I recall this for you, so that you may be saved.”

“John was a burning and shining lamp, and for a while you were willing to enjoy his light. But I have greater evidence than that of John – the works which the Father entrusted to Me to carry out. The very works I do bear witness : The Father has sent Me.”

“Thus He Who bears witness to Me is the Father Who sent Me. You have never heard His voice and have never seen His likeness; therefore, as long as you do not believe His messenger, His word is not in you. You search in the Scriptures, thinking that in them you will find life; yet Scripture bears witness to Me. But you refuse to come to Me, that you may live.”

“I am not seeking human praise; but I have known that love of God is not within you, for I have come in My Father’s Name and you do not accept Me. If another comes in his own name, you will accept him. As long as you seek praise from one another, instead of seeking the glory which comes from the only God, how can you believe?”

“Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father. Moses himself, in whom you placed your hope, accuses you. If you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote of Me. But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?”

by

Thursday, 10 March 2016 : 4th Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 105 : 19-20, 21-22, 23

They made a calf at Horeb and worshipped the molten image. They exchanged the glory of God for the image of a bull that eats grass.

They forgot their Saviour God, Who had done great things in Egypt, wonderful works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Sea of Reeds.

So He spoke of destroying them, but Moses, His chosen one, stood in the breach before Him to shield them from destruction.

by

Thursday, 10 March 2016 : 4th Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Exodus 32 : 7-14

Then YHVH said to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. They have quickly turned from the way I commanded them and have made for themselves a molten calf; they have bowed down before it and sacrificed to it and said : ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you out of Egypt.'”

And YHVH said to Moses, “I see that these people are a stiff-necked people. Now just leave Me that My anger may blaze against them. I will destroy them, but of you I will make a great nation.”

But Moses calmed the anger of YHVH, his God, and said, “Why, o YHVH, should Your anger burst against Your people whom You brought out of the land of Egypt with such great power and with a mighty hand? Let not the Egyptians say : ‘YHVH brought them out with evil intent, for He wanted to kill them in the mountains and wipe them from the face of the earth.'”

“Turn away from the heat of Your anger and do not bring disaster on Your people. Remember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the promise You Yourself swore : I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land I spoke about I will give to them as an everlasting inheritance.”

YHVH then changed His mind and would not yet harm His people.

by

Thursday, 3 March 2016 : 3rd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard the word of God spoken through the Holy Scriptures, where we heard about how the people doubted what the Lord Jesus had done, and even accused Him of colluding with the devil and his forces in order to perform the miraculous things that He had done. It was indeed sad to witness such a turn of events, and surely many of us are asking, why is it so?

It is because their hearts had been hardened by prejudice, by selfishness, by stubbornness, and by worldly desires of men, who sought to satisfy themselves first at the expense of others. They hardened their hearts because Jesus spoke the truth to them, and the truth to these people was not something that is good or appealing. For it was revealed the extent of their sinfulness, and how wicked they had been.

And they had not changed in their ways of life. They resorted to wicked and unholy things, and they refused when someone came telling them to turn away from their paths. That is the nature of our human pride, our ego, that we are reluctant to admit that we are wrong and that the other person or people were right. Our ego and ambition prevented us from looking humbly at things and instead of rectifying the issues at hand, we ended up perpetuating the bad things we have done.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are all called to reject all sorts of ego and human pride, and all the negative emotions and wickedness inside each one of us. And why is this very important, brethren? What Jesus our Lord had told us this day also ring true in its other meaning and reminder to us. When He spoke of a kingdom being divided against itself will fall, it also spoke about the same division that is currently inflicted in us.

What does this mean? Let us look at the state of the Church itself, brothers and sisters, that we have so many people who professed faith in the Lord, and yet equally as many professed the faith in their own ways, and many followed their own versions of the faith, refusing to obey the Lord and His Church, of which there is only one, the One and only Holy Mother Church, the Catholic Church.

God established His Church on earth through His Apostles and the other disciples, who continued His mission through many places and from cities to cities, as more and more people come to believe in the Lord. But it was human ego and pride that made them to start to be distracted and be swayed in their path towards God. And instead of listening to the Lord and obeying His commandment through His Church, they chose to forge their own path and broke apart the unity of the Church.

And thus the scandal of disunity was born, and many Christians everywhere were divided against each other, and many refused to listen to the call of God calling them to return to the Holy Mother Church. They accused one another and calling each other liars and sinners, while they themselves did not look at their own sins and wrongdoings. And these are what we should avoid doing in this season of Lent.

Rather, God is calling us to work hard and to labour for unity, for the complete reunification of His Church, the Body of our Lord consisting of all those who professed true faith in God and in full obedience to Him in the unity of His Church under the authority of St. Peter and his successors, the Popes as well as the bishops united to the authority of the Vicar of Christ.

And so, let us all, brethren in Christ, work together as one to overcome our human emotions and challenges that had become our obstacles in the path to true unity, and let us help to restore the unity of the faithful in God’s Church, by learning to be humble, and to preach humility, so that all those who have left the true faith by following their own paths may return in humility and together we may find our way to God and to His salvation. May God bless us all, His Church. Amen.

by

Thursday, 3 March 2016 : 3rd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 11 : 14-23

At that time, one day Jesus was driving out a demon, which was mute. When the demon had been driven out, the mute person could speak, and the people were amazed. Yet some of them said, “He drives out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the chief of the demons.” Others wanted to put Him to the test, by asking Him for a heavenly sign.

But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them, “Every nation divided by civil war is on the road to ruin, and will fall. If Satan also is divided, his empire is coming to an end. How can you say that I drive out demons by calling upon Beelzebul? If I drive them out by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive out demons? They will be your judges, then.”

“But if I drive out demons by the finger of God; would not this mean that the kingdom of God, has come upon you? As long as a man, strong and well armed, guards his house, his goods are safe. But when a stronger man attacks and overcomes him, the challenger takes away all the weapons he relied on, and disposes of his spoils.”

“Whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me, scatters.”

by

Thursday, 3 March 2016 : 3rd Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 94 : 1-2, 6-7, 8-9

Come, let us sing to the Lord, let us make a joyful sound to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him giving thanks, with music and songs of praise.

Come and worship; let us bow down, kneel before the Lord, our Maker. He is our God, and we His people; the flock He leads and pastures. Would that today you heard His voice!

Do not be stubborn, as at Meribah, in the desert, on that day in Massah, when your ancestors challenged Me, and they put Me to the test.

by

Thursday, 3 March 2016 : 3rd Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Jeremiah 7 : 23-28

One thing I did command them : Listen to My voice and I will be your God and you will be My people. Walk in the way I command you and all will be well with you. But they did not listen and paid no attention; they followed the bad habits of their stubborn heart and turned away from Me.

From the time I brought their forebearers out of Egypt until this day I have continually sent them My servants, the prophets, but this stiff-necked people did not listen. They paid no attention and were worse than their forebearers.

You may say all these things to them but they will not listen; you will call them but they will not answer. This is a nation that did not obey YHVH and refused to be disciplined; truth has perished and is no longer heard from their lips.

by

Thursday, 25 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are all reminded of the fate that awaits all those who have not been faithful and to God, namely all those who have committed sin in His presence. The story of Lazarus and the rich man underlined the division that existed between the world and the Lord in their respective ways. And God reminded us that the fate awaiting those who have not been righteous, then they shall fall down into the depth of hell and the eternal fire.

Those who are faithful and committed to the Lord shall not be disappointed. Even though they may encounter difficulties and challenges throughout their earthly lives, but God Who knows it all and sees all, shall know all that His people had done on earth, and He will reward them in accordance to their virtues and deeds, as they have done it.

In the first reading from the book of the prophet Jeremiah, it was made clear to us, that those who have followed the path of righteousness shall be blessed and shall receive the fullness of God’s grace, and have the inheritance and the eternal promise of God given to them as their right. But those who have been wicked and refused to do as what the Lord had told them to do, these shall be destroyed and cast out into the utter darkness.

It is a reminder for all of us still living in this world, not to wait until it is too late for us, to change our ways and abandon all the sinful and wicked things that we have done and committed in this life. God has offered us many chances and opportunities, but it is up to us now whether we want to accept His mercy and be forgiven from our sins.

And we cannot merely just say that we will repent and change our ways, as words without actions are truly empty and meaningless. Instead, we must show with real action, dedication and commitment, that we want to be forgiven, and that we will abandon all of our past wickedness, and turn over a new leaf, and embrace righteousness and justice from now on. This is what we urgently need to do, brothers and sisters in Christ.

We cannot say or think that there is still ample amount of time for us. We may think that we are still young and we have many more years ahead of us to enjoy all the goodness and the pleasures in this world, but life is not for us to decide, when the Lord Himself Who is Lord and Master of all life, is the One to decide our fate, when He calls us back to Himself, and then from there, into judgment.

Thus, in this season of Lent, this very moment, this very day, minute and second, let us not hesitate any longer, and let us not be afraid any longer, or be unsure of what to do. Instead, let us all gather every ounce of our strength, and commit ourselves to righteousness and charity, and in all of our actions, let us no longer be self-serving and selfish, but instead, let us all love one another and care for each other as our own brethren in the Lord.

May our efforts be blessed by God, and may all of us find our way to the Lord, and through our actions and commitments, let us be justified by the actions that we have done to hold upright our faith in God. Let us practice self-limitation and inculcate in ourselves, a heart for service and charity during this period of Lent. And therefore, let us all hope that God will make us stronger as His people in faith. God bless us all. Amen.