truth of the Lord

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Wednesday, 23 June 2021 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Peter 1 : 8-12

You have not, yet, seen Him, and, yet, you love Him; even without seeing Him, you believe in Him, and experience a heavenly joy beyond all words, for you are reaching the goal of your faith : the salvation of your souls.

This was the salvation for which the prophets so eagerly looked when, in days past, they foretold the favour of God, with regard to you. But they could only investigate when the Spirit of Christ present within them, pointed out the time and the circumstances, of this – the sufferings of Christ, and the glories which would follow.

It was revealed to them, that they were working, not for themselves, but for you. Thus, in these days, after the Holy Spirit has been sent from heaven, the Gospel’s preachers have taught you these mysteries, which even the Angels long to see.

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Thursday, 14 August 2014 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maximilian Kolbe, Priest and Martyr (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are taught on the value and importance of forgiveness in our lives by none other than our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, who mentioned that we have to forgive and forgive, again and again. When Peter asked if he should forgive his brethren seven times and Jesus replied that he should do it seventy-seven times should not be literally taken as a seventy-seven times of forgiveness, but rather that our acts in all things must be filled with mercy and forgiveness, one that is genuine from our hearts.

The Lord Himself is the embodiment of the perfect mercy and love, forgiving His people who are also His children from their trespasses and rebelliousness, while chastising them for the kind of sinful and rebellious behaviour they had shown. But of course there is a limit that God has set to His mercy and kindness, especially if those to whom He had shown this mercy consistently and persistently refused to listen and to change for the better, then they are truly digging their own graves and lead themselves to destruction.

That was why our Lord sent prophets after prophets to help His people, to remind them and guide them on the right path, and this includes Ezekiel, whom God sent to His people in exile in Babylon, warning and reminding them of their continued sins and rebelliousness against God which would bring them to greater disaster and destruction in the end. God wanted to forgive them, but forgiveness must also be accepted with sincerity, or otherwise it will not work as intended.

The whole of mankind is indeed in exile, and had been since the days when Adam and Eve our ancestors first disobeyed the Lord, and therefore lost the certainty of inheritance of the divine glory and riches which had been our share as of when God created us. But God gave us nothing lesser than Himself through His Son, Jesus Christ, as the concrete and ultimate symbol of forgiveness and hope for mankind, that through Him, all our wounds and our afflictions would be healed.

It is now up to us, whether we accept graciously the generous offer of mercy and repent, following the Lord once again into salvation and eternal glory in heaven. It is also our choice to stay apart from the Lord and His love, following our own human desires and fallibilities, and likely these will end us in destruction and endless cycles of hatred, violence and evil. It is up to us, for us to break free from this cycle and usher a new era of peace, love and harmony based on the Lord.

And today we celebrate the feast of a saint, whose life and examples would truly awaken us to this idea of mercy and forgiveness, as well as love for our fellow men, and this saint had just passed before us less than a century ago. He is St. Maximilian Kolbe, the saint of World War II and the saint of the Holocaust in NAZI Germany. He was one of the many martyrs of the faith, who together with others like St. Edith Stein or St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, died for her faith.

St. Maximilian Kolbe was a Polish priest who joined the religious life since his youth, and was particularly devoted to the Immaculate Virgin Mary, trying his best throughout his ministries to spread the devotion to the Immaculate Virgin Mary, even establishing newspapers and publication dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. St. Maximilian Kolbe took part in numerous missionary works, and particularly he visited Japan many times, spreading the seeds of faith among the people there.

But eventually what made St. Maximilian Kolbe truly known to the world was his actions during the Second World War in which he was arrested and interned, and when several prisoners were found to have attempted escape from the prison at the infamous Auschwitz extermination camp, they were immediately sentenced to death. However, when one of the prisoners cried out in agony and sorrow over his family, St. Maximilian Kolbe immediately offered himself in exchange for the life of the Polish inmate.

St. Maximilian Kolbe endured two whole weeks of dehydration, complete isolation and total denial of food. But he remained cheerful and in fact encouraged the others who were also condemned to die, celebrating the Mass with joy and persevering amidst the shadow of death. And when the Germans decided to clear the room, they found St. Maximilian Kolbe to be still alive and proceeded to execute him. He met death with joy and without fear, and into the hands of the Lord he gave up his soul.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, are we all able to follow the examples of St. Maximilian Kolbe? He forgave his executors, brought life and hope to another man, whose family received him in renewed joy. St. Maximilian Kolbe and his actions truly showed the embodiment of the love and mercy of God. Remember, that if St. Maximilian Kolbe gave up his life in exchange for the life of a man chained in prison, then our Lord Jesus Christ gave up His life and suffer on the cross in exchange for the life of all men, that is all of us, chained by the chains of sin.

Let us all break free of the cycle of hatred, violence, evil and death. Let us all work together to seek peace and harmony among all peoples. And may Almighty God bless our endeavours, and may His love and mercy together with the examples and the intercession of St. Maximilian Kolbe help us to be better children of God, and always think first of the Lord and His infinite mercy. Amen.

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Saturday, 19 April 2014 : Easter Vigil of the Lord’s Resurrection, Easter Triduum (Sixth Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Baruch 3 : 9-15, 32 – Baruch 4 : 4

Listen, Israel, to the commands of life, give ear so as to learn prudence. Why, Israel! Why are you in the land of your foes? Why are you growing old in a foreign country, contaminated by pagans, counted among those who go to the pit?

You have abandoned the source of Wisdom. If you had walked in the way of God,  peace would be your dwelling place forever. Learn where is Wisdom, where is Strength and Understanding, that you may know, at the same time, where are length of days and life, light of the eyes and Peace.

Who will find Wisdom’s dwelling? Who will enter her storage rooms? But He who knows everything recognises her. He has found her in His own intellect. He who created the earth, for all time, and has filled it with four-footed beings.

He who sends the light, and it goes, who recalls it, and trembling it obeys. The stars shine, full of joy, to keep their night watches. He calls them and they answer, “Here we are.” They shine with joy for their Creator.

It is He who is our God, no other can be compared with Him. He has found the way of understanding and has given her to Jacob His servant and to Israel His well-beloved. Then Wisdom was seen on earth and lived among humans.

She herself is the book of the commands of God, the law which endures forever. All who hold fast to her will have life but those who abandon her will die. Come back, Jacob, and embrace her, walk towards brightness under her light.

Do not give up what is your glory or sell your privileges to any strange nation. We are fortunate, o Israel, for we know what pleases the Lord!

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Wednesday, 29 January 2014 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard about the parable of the sower, where the sower spread the seeds which fell on different kind of medium and ground, and thereafter bear different kinds of results. In this well known parable, the Lord compared the different effects of the medium has on the seeds, with the reality of humanity and their faith to the Lord.

The seeds spread by the sower is the seed of faith, that has been given to us by the Lord. Each and every one of us were created by God, and His Spirit is within us, and in each of us we have been given faith. We have also been given the seeds of love inside each of us, and we have the capacity of love, as the children of God. But this faith is dormant, and the love in us is also dormant.

Yes, faith must not be kept dormant in us, or it is indeed dead. Our faith must be backed up by love, that is actions of love. And therefore, love itself cannot be dormant, but we have to share it with others via our actions, and therefore, make that love bloom through our action as well. However, we often have to deal with our environment, that is our surroundings and the world in which we live in.

This world is filled with many good things, particularly that of temptations and the allures of material goods. It is easy for us to be influenced by them, and losing our compass towards the Lord. Using the same analogy, these challenges can be likened to the weed growths that threatened the growing crops in the field. And they are also likened to thorns that choked the life out of the growing seed, as explained by Jesus.

The way of the world is indeed easier to be followed than the way of the Lord. But while the way of the world apparently is easier and filled with goodness, but it ends in darkness and suffering, whereas the way of the Lord may appear to be difficult and ridden with challenges, but in the end is happiness and joy of living in the glory of the Lord. Yet, many of us prefer the shortcut and did not want to experience suffering and hence opted to follow the path of the devil.

This is what we should not do, brethren. It does not mean that our lives should be entirely filled with difficulties and challenges, neither does that mean that we cannot enjoy this life at all. What is more important is that, whatever the things we experience in life, and all the choices that we have to make in life, make it with the full conscience that we ought to obey the Lord and follow His ways in all the things we do.

When it is time that we receive much blessing and joy, then be happy and rejoice, and most importantly, do not forget to give thanks to the Lord who had given us that blessing. Do not be too engulfed by the joy either, that we forget about others who are not as fortunate as us. Instead, whatever joy we have within us, share it with one another, especially those who have none of that joy.

And when it is time of difficulty and challenges, let us endure them with grace and patience, and asking God to be with us and to guide us through those difficult times, much as what our holy saints and martyrs had done in the past, when the world rose up against them, even crying out for their lives. Do not fear, for God is always with us. Nobody can destroy us forever, for we have been marked to belong to God.

And that is why it is important for us to also have a deep faith in God, that is faith with strong foundations. Again I would like to stress that faith cannot be just mere lip service or on documents. Our faith must genuinely come from the heart, and not just that, but overflowing with love that pours out from our heart. Without good roots, then our faith will wither just like the seeds that wither on the rocky soil.

Faith substantiated with much love is what we need, and that is the recipe for the fertile growth of the seed that God had planted in each one of us. This faith must be real and concrete, with genuine love and care that we have for each and every one of our brothers and sisters in faith. And in that way, our faith will indeed bear much fruits, together with our love in us, and we will become blessed and bountiful with God’s blessing.

Let us remember always brethren, that we all have our obligations as those who had committed ourselves to the Lord and His ways. Each of us can contribute in our own ways, and fulfill the will of God, through faith that is vibrant, dynamic, and strong, and founded on love, genuine and pure, that we may be productive and fruitful in the eyes of God, and He who sees all, will reward us. God bless us all, always and forever. Amen.