Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded of the nature of our human existence in this world, as those whose mortal bodies will eventually be subjected to death, while our souls are eternal and everlasting. God created each and every one of us out of His overflowing and ever enduring love, which He has most generously shared with us, in love that He has always shown us from the very beginning of time. We are all reminded that ultimately we all belong to the Lord, and we have to do whatever we can, such that we continue to live our lives worthily of God, by living righteously and virtuously, according to His Law and commandments, as much as we are able to.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Wisdom, of the exhortation regarding the nature of our creation, and how we are all also reminded that we were actually never intended to suffer in this world or to experience any kind of suffering or death. Instead, God had created us out of His pure love for us, and He has always intended for each and every one of us to to live our lives filled with His grace and love, ever always in His loving Presence, to be holy just as He is Holy, and to be righteous, virtuous and just, in all of our ways, in all of our dealings, actions and works throughout our lives. This is what God has always intended for us all, His beloved people, whom He has called from the whole world, to come once again to His loving Presence.

Unfortunately, because we disobeyed God and did not listen to His words and commandments, hence, we end up falling into the path of sin. Since the time of our earliest forefathers, many of us chose to follow the temptations of evil, the allures of worldly pleasures and all the desires which had led many of us astray, down the wrong path away from the Lord. And this was why we have to endure and suffer the consequences of our disobedience, which is death. In truth, we were always meant to live our lives in the presence of God, harmoniously and joyfully enjoying the fullness of His love and grace. Unfortunately, disobedience led to sin, and sin brought us to suffering and death, because sin corrupted our bodies and mind, our hearts and souls, separating us from God.

Yet, God did not intend to destroy us, or to cast us out from His Presence forever, because His love for each and every one of us is far greater than how much He despises our sins and wickedness. Thus, He gave us many opportunities, again and again, to find our way back to Him, through His numerous reminders and help, all those messengers and helpers He had provided to us, through the help of the Angels and the saints, all those who lives have been good, worthy and exemplary, and hence became great role models, inspirations and encouragement for all of us coming after them. And to those of us who have embraced God once again with love and faith, while our bodies may succumb to the temporary effects of death and destruction, but our eternal soul persists and will be reunited with God in due time.

This is also where the Church’s teachings and beliefs in the afterlife is yet again highlighted on this month of November, as we remember in particular the holy souls in Purgatory. After we die, there are three states that may happen to us, at the moment called the Particular Judgment, which separated the righteous from the wicked. Those who had rejected God and continued to persist in sin had condemned themselves to an eternity of suffering and despair, cast out forever in Hell. Meanwhile, some of the very righteous and worthy ones had lived their lives most virtuously, and hence, merited immediately the entry into the eternal bliss and true joy of Heaven. These are the saints, those who have been officially recognised by the Church for their virtues, as well as the many others whose lives and deeds may not yet been recognised, and yet, whose virtues are known to God, and merit Heaven.

Meanwhile, for many others, they were fairly righteous and good, but because of their residual sins and unrepented faults, they cannot enter into Heaven yet, because no sin can be present before God, unforgiven and unrepented. Hence, they are the ones known as the holy souls in Purgatory, as a state between this world and Heaven, where the ones who still have to endure some sufferings and wait, in the moments when they were being purified and brought free from the remnants of their sins, lay in wait, until the moment when they are finally ready to move on into the Holy Presence of God in Heaven as they are intended for. The passage from the Book of Wisdom today spoke of this, of the souls being tested by fire, which is not exactly a kind of fire that we are familiar with, but spiritual fire that cleanses the corruptions of sin in the souls of the faithful.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples and followers, regarding the nature of a servant and the relationship that servant has to his or her master. The master has a very clear supremacy and dominion over the servants, who have to obey everything that the master commanded the servant to do. This was meant to represent the relationship between God and us mankind, because we are truly God’s servants, and the Lord did not have anything that He owes to us, because He is our Lord and Master, and we naturally ought to follow Him and obey His every will and whim. Yet, at the same time, the Lord also wants us to know that, unlike the traditional master-servant relationship highlighted in His exhortation, the Lord is a loving Master, Who truly cares for us all, even though we are undeserving of Him, His love and attention.

Why is this so? That is because we must ask ourselves, which Lord and Master chose to come down upon us, humble Himself and live among us, walking in our midst, communicating and contacting us, dwelling among us and having meal with us, even with the ones whom some deemed to be sinful and unworthy, like the tax collectors. And yet, the Lord Jesus came into our midst, bringing forth towards us the love of God manifested fully in the flesh, making God to be perceptible, tangible and reachable for all of us, that He is no longer distant or intangible for us. He reached out to us with love, reminding all of us that His nature, truly first and foremost is one of love, and this love has always been directed towards all of us, without exception.

Therefore, having been reminded of God’s love and generous kindness, let us all as Christians embrace the Lord once again with sincerity and commitment at all times, reminding ourselves ever always that God has always wanted each one of us to be fully reconciled with Him. Let us all no longer be separated from God’s love and grace, and do our best in each and every moments of our lives, that we will always be exemplary and worthy in everything that we say and do, in our every interactions and efforts, our collaborations and works. Let us also pray for one another, and also for the holy souls in Purgatory, our beloved brothers and sisters. May the Lord be with us always, His love and kindness, and may He strengthen each and every one of us that all of us may always be strong and resilient, dedicated and faithful in each and every moments of our lives. Amen.