Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops) or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded to follow the Lord wholeheartedly and keep away from wicked thoughts and deeds. All of us should uphold the truth of God fully and do not allow ourselves be easily swayed by the falsehoods and the evils of this world, which can lead us down the wrong path, as what many among our predecessors had done, and unfortunately, all these had also led to great harm to the Church of God. In the past, throughout the history of the Church, we have had cases when the faithful had been misled and misguided, and the unity of the Church had been harmed and destroyed by the selfish ambitions and desires of certain individuals who placed their own ambitions above that of obedience to God and true faith.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Corinth about the matter of how sin and wickedness could have corrupted and twisted the faithful people of God from the right path, leading them down the path of sin and evil, further and further away from God. This was a time when there were preachers and teachers of the faith who preached and taught different versions and interpretations of the Gospels and the teachings than that of St. Paul and the other Apostles, either due to misinterpretations or because of the corruption from those who tried to syncretise and change the teachings of the Church to suit their own pursuits and desires. This led to the divisions within the Church, friction among the faithful and troubles which would continue to trouble the Church later on throughout its history.

In the Gospel today we then heard of the Lord Jesus speaking to His disciples regarding the matter of praying to God, in which He told them that prayers are not about saying many words or making a long litany of things, but rather, glorifying God and thanking Him, recognising one’s need for God and His love, and showing the desire to love one another and to forgive each others’ sins just as the Lord Himself had taught us, in what would eventually be known as the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer, also known as Pater Noster, is the embodiment of what true and genuine prayer should be like, one in which we open our hearts and minds to listen to the Lord speaking to us, thanking Him and allowing Him to lead and guide us, instead of selfishly and stubbornly putting ourselves and our own greedy desires as the focus of our lives.

We have to realise that our desires can bring about our downfall if we are not careful about it, as we may easily end up being distracted and swayed to walk away from the path of God, and into the path of worldliness and evil. If we allow worldly desires and greed to lead us, it will likely not end well for us, and we may end up getting drawn ever further away from the Lord and His salvation. Worse still, it can also affect others around us, causing harm to the unity of the Church and the faithful people of God, by our stubbornness and attachments to the many worldly glories and fame, temptations and other things that may distract us from God and His truth. That is why all of us should strive to turn away from all these wickedness and evils, and look upon our good and dedicated predecessors as inspirations and guides to help us discern our path forward.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of not just one but three great saints, holy men of God who had dedicated their lives and actions to the Lord, giving themselves thoroughly to Him and committing themselves to His cause. All the three of them are truly exemplary in their actions and works, leading a life truly worthy of the Lord, and when they were faced with hardships and tribulations, persecutions and trials, all those things did not dissuade them or prevent them from continuing to live their lives with the same kind of faith and commitment. On the contrary, they kept on going and dedicated themselves even more to the Lord and His cause, and did not mind the sufferings and persecutions that they had to face, with two of these three saints suffering martyrdom for the sake of the Lord and His Church, standing firm in their faith to the end.

This day we celebrate the feast of St. Paulinus of Nola, St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher, with the first one being a Roman era saint and bishop, renowned for his faith in God and generosity, commitment and dedication to his flock and to all those who have encountered him, while the other two, St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher were the most prominent among the many martyrs of the so-called English reformation, in their staunch opposition of the English King’s efforts to break free from the authority of the Pope and the Universal Church, defying even their own liege and king in doing so, in order to stand by their faith and to uphold what they truly and sincerely believed, against the wrong ideas and ways that the king wanted to impose on the faithful people of God, in breaking the unity of the Church.

First of all, St. Paulinus of Nola was born into a prominent Roman family in what is today part of southern France, and became a Roman aristocrat and statesman, becoming ultimately the governor of Campania, prior to his conversion to the Christian faith. Eventually, he embraced the Lord and the Christian faith, and abandoning his worldly posts, he became the Bishop of Nola, for which he was greatly remembered, in his renunciation of the world and all of its excesses, and in his embracing a holy and ascetic way of life, dedicating himself wholly to God. St. Paulinus of Nola was also remembered for his many correspondences with the other early Church fathers, as well as in his many efforts to build and strengthen the Church in his diocese of Nola and beyond. Through his piety, humility and dedication to God, St. Paulinus of Nola is truly a great example for all of us.

Meanwhile, St. Thomas More was a prominent statesman and also the Lord High Chancellor of England under King Henry VIII. St. John Fisher was the Bishop of Rochester and one influential Church leaders during the reign of the same king. King Henry VIII was infamous in his efforts to beget a male heir to the throne, in his six marriages to six women, and eventually in his futile attempts in doing so, with the male heir that he begotten, passed away in early youth not long after that boy ascended the throne. However, very unfortunately, in his desperate measures, King Henry VIII chose to disobey the Lord and His Church, by divorcing his own wife, who had begotten for him a daughter, and chose to marry another woman, in contravention of the divine and the Church law, hence, triggering the breakaway of the Church in England, resulting in the English reformation.

Amidst such a state, as King Henry VIII demanded that all the people converted to his new establishment and church leadership, while many did so out of opportunism and fear of the king, St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher were notable as the highly ranked members of the king’s influential advisors who refused to obey the king’s commands, and in the case of St. Thomas More, he chose to oppose the king’s decision in breaking away from the Universal Church and the decision to divorce his wife, and preferred to remain faithful to the Lord despite the persuasions and coercions for him to follow the king’s orders. St. Thomas More faced suffering and persecution, and eventually together with St. John Fisher, who was a courageous Church leader made a Cardinal for his dedication by the Pope, were martyred for their great and committed faith in God. They both showed us that we have to remain truly faithful to the Lord and not to give in to wickedness and worldly desires as the fallen King had done.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore follow the examples of these holy and faithful predecessors of ours, be inspired by their examples and great works, and walk in the path of the Lord ever more faithfully from now on. Let us all be good examples and role models of our faith, in our every works and endeavours, in our every words, actions and deeds. May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to guide and strengthen us all to be His faithful disciples, ever focused on Him and His teachings and truth, now and always. Amen.