Tuesday

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Tuesday, 28 November 2023 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Daniel 2 : 31-45

Daniel said to king Nebuchadnezzar, “In your vision you saw a statue – very large, very bright; terrible to look at. Its head was of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. As you watched, a rock cut from a mountain, but not by human hands, struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay; smashing them.”

“All at once the iron, clay, bronze, silver and gold crumbled into pieces, as fine as chaff on the threshing floor in summer. The wind swept them off and not a trace was left. But the rock that struck the statue became a great mountain that filled the whole earth.”

“That was the dream. Now the interpretation. You, o king, are king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given dominion, strength, power and glory, and into whose hand He has placed humankind, the beasts of the field and the birds of the air, making you ruler over them. You are that head of gold.”

“After you, another kingdom, inferior to yours, will rise. Then a third kingdom, of bronze, will rule the whole world. Last shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron; and just as iron breaks and crushes everything else, so will it break and smash all the others.”

“The partly-clay and partly-iron feet and toes mean that it will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of the iron, just as you saw iron mixed with clay. And as the toes were partly iron and partly clay, the kingdom will be partly strong and partly weak. Just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, the people will be a mixture but will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.”

“In the time of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom, never to be destroyed or delivered up to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and put an end to them; and it will endure forever. This is the meaning of your vision of a rock cut from a mountain not by human hands; the rock, which struck the statue and broke into pieces the iron, bronze, clay, silver and gold. The great God has shown the king what will happen in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation reliable.”

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Tuesday, 21 November 2023 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, commemorating the moment when Mary, the Mother of God, was presented at the Temple of Jerusalem, the House of God in accordance to the rules and ways of the Law of God. She was presented and consecrated to God, as a prefigurement of the role that she would later on play in the history of our salvation. Indeed, Mary has been prepared and set aside by the Lord from the very beginning, from before she was even conceived, to be the one to bring forth the salvation into the world. She was set aside, made special, and by the singular grace of God, she was spared from the corruption of original sin and all the taints and corruptions of sin henceforth, that she was truly conceived without sin.

This is what the Church has taught and preserved from the very beginning, in the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In that Dogma, the Church teaches that Mary had been spared from the effects of sin, which had afflicted us from the very beginning of time, when our first ancestors, Adam and Eve, chose to disobey the Lord and embraced the path of sin, the path that Satan had offered and tempted them with. All mankind had been afflicted by the corruption and have to suffer the consequences of sin ever since, that is death. However, Mary was prepared special by the Lord because she has a particular destiny and purpose, that is to become the one to bear the Saviour of the whole world, as the Mother of God herself.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Zechariah in which the prophet spoke of God’s words and reassurance for all of His people that He would send them His salvation, and everyone of them would rejoice once again because He would dwell among them once again, and that they would be saved from their predicament and troubles. The Lord would once again dwell among His people, just as He had done in the days past, when the Ark of the Covenant was in the first Temple of God built by King Solomon. Ever since the people disobeyed the Lord and abandoned Him for the pagan gods and idols, they had been cast out and punished, but the Lord never did abandon or neglect them. He still continued to send out messengers, prophets and helpers in order to help and guide them in their path towards Him.

It was exactly through Mary that God and His salvation has come into this world, because as we all know and are going to prepare to celebrate later in Advent and Christmas, by the will of the Father and by the power of the Holy Spirit, the Divine Word of God Himself has become flesh, incarnate into Man, and was conceived in the hallowed womb of Mary, to become a Child and born of her. And because of this, it is essential that she is hallowed and made to be worthy of God Himself being present within her. Why is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because linking to the Ark of the Covenant which I mentioned just earlier, which is representing God’s Holy Presence among His people, Mary is the New Ark of the New Covenant which God would make and establish with His people, through the Son to be born of Mary’s womb, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

The original Ark of the Covenant contained the two stone tablets upon which the Law of God had been inscribed and written, the Ten Commandments as we are all familiar with, as well as the manna, the heavenly bread with which the Lord fed His people, the Israelites, throughout the entirety of their forty years long sojourn and travel from the land of Egypt to the Promised Land, as well as the Staff of Aaron, the staff of priestly authority and leadership, with which God had performed many of His signs and wonders through Moses and Aaron, and which represented the leadership of God’s people. And it was upon this Ark of the Covenant, crafted from the finest materials and decorated with the golden Cherubim on top, that the Lord descended upon His people, seated upon the Ark, and hence, becoming the very tangible sign of His Presence in this world.

Then, comparing this to what the Lord would bring forth through Mary, there is an even far greater Covenant and things that happened than the original Ark of the Covenant. The original Ark of the Covenant, which was made from the finest materials and wrought with human hands, was so holy that no one was allowed to directly touch it, and in one instance, when one of the priests accidentally touched it, he was immediately struck dead. Why is that so? That is because God is so Holy and perfect that no sin and imperfection, corruption and evil may exist in His Presence and remain. Hence, the same logic applies as well to Mary, who was to become the vessel of God Himself, this time truly present and tangible in the flesh, in His Holy Presence, the Almighty and all-Holy God descending into our world through Mary. That was why, she was set aside and hallowed, Immaculate, free from any taints of sin throughout her life, being full of God’s grace.

Now, on this day, as we commemorate this Feast of the Presentation of Mary, the Blessed Mother of God, let us all therefore look upon Mary, the one through whom God had done so many great and wonderful works, in bringing forth His salvation into this world. What is important is, we must also realise that Mary is not just worthy of veneration, honour and following because of her having been set aside by the Lord to be the holy vessel for Our Lord and Saviour, but she herself had lived her life worthily of the Lord, at all times throughout her life. She has shown what it means for us to live a good, holy and worthy Christian living, in all of our lives, our words, actions and deeds. And she is therefore a great inspiration and role model for all of us, just as she has also always encouraged us to remain true and faithful to the Lord as our loving Mother.

When the Lord in our Gospel passage today was talking about those who follow the Lord, obey His will and Law are those who are His mother and family members, He was not actually disrespecting His own Mother, who was there waiting on Him and following Him. Rather, on the contrary, the Lord was actually pointing to everyone who listened to Him, to follow the examples of His own loving Mother in all the things that they say and do. Therefore, all of us should also do the same in our own lives, in doing what the Lord has told and taught us to do, in living our lives, carrying out our actions and interactions, with the Lord as the focus and emphasis in them. Let our lives be the shining beacons of God’s light and truth, His love and compassion to others, that more and more may come to know Him as His love.

May the Lord, our loving God and Master continue to love us and strengthen us in faith, and may through the good examples and inspirations of His Blessed Mother, Mary, who is our mother too, we all may come ever closer to the Lord and His Holy Presence. May all of us be blessed in our every good efforts and endeavours, all for the greater glory of God, now and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 21 November 2023 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 12 : 46-50

At that time, while Jesus was talking to the people, His mother and His brothers wanted to speak to Him, and they waited outside. So someone said to Him, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside; they want to speak with You.”

Jesus answered, “Who is My mother? Who are My brothers?” Then He pointed to His disciples and said, “Look! Here are My mother and My brothers. Whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”

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Tuesday, 21 November 2023 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 46-47, 48-49, 50-51, 52-53, 54-55

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit exults in God, my Saviour!

He has looked upon His servant, in her lowliness, and people, forever, will call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, Holy is His Name!

From age to age, His mercy extends to those who live in His presence. He has acted with power and done wonders, and scattered the proud with their plans.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up those who are downtrodden. He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

He held out His hand to Israel, His servant, for He remembered His mercy, even as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.

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Tuesday, 21 November 2023 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Zechariah 2 : 14-17

Sing and rejoice, o daughter of Zion, for I am about to come, I shall dwell among you,” says YHVH. “On that day, many nations will join YHVH and be My people, but My dwelling is among you.”

The people of Judah will be for YHVH as His portion in His holy land. He will choose Jerusalem again. Keep still in YHVH’s presence, for He comes, having risen from His holy dwelling.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2023 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2023 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 17 : 7-10

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Who among you would say to your servant, coming in from the fields after plowing or tending sheep, ‘Go ahead and have your dinner’? No, you tell him, ‘Prepare my dinner. Put on your apron, and wait on me while I eat and drink. You can eat and drink afterward.'”

“Do you thank this servant for doing what you told him to do? I do not think so. And therefore, when you have done all that you have been told to do, you should say, ‘We are no more than servants; we have only done our duty.'”

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Tuesday, 14 November 2023 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 33 : 2-3, 16-17, 18-19

I will praise YHVH all my days; His praise will be ever on my lips. My soul makes its boast in YHVH; let the lowly hear and rejoice.

The eyes of YHVH are fixed on the righteous; His ears are inclined to their cries. But His face is set against the wicked, to destroy their memory from the earth.

YHVH hears the cry of the righteous and rescues them from all their troubles. YHVH is close to the brokenhearted and saves the distraught.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2023 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Wisdom 2 : 23 – Wisdom 3 : 9

Indeed God created man to be immortal in the likeness of His own nature, but the envy of the devil brought death to the world, and those who take his side shall experience death.

The souls of the just are in the hands of God and no torment shall touch them. In the eyes of the unwise they appear to be dead. Their going is held as a disaster; it seems that they lose everything by departing from us, but they are in peace.

Though seemingly they have been punished, immortality was the soul of their hope. After slight affliction will come great blessings, for God has tried them and found them worthy to be with Him; after testing them as gold in the furnace, He has accepted them as a holocaust.

At the time of His coming they will shine like sparks that run in the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will be their King forever. Those who trust in Him will penetrate the truth, those who are faithful will live with Him in love, for His grace and mercy are for His chosen ones.

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Tuesday, 7 November 2023 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are called as Christians to be always ever full of love and compassion towards others, and most importantly, all of us need to be fully attuned to God, and be focused on Him in all opportunities and moments. This means that our whole lives and existence should always be centred on God, and we should always strive to do what God has taught and shown us to do, or otherwise how can we call or consider ourselves as Christians? It is important that we are all truly Christians not just in name or formality only, but that we are all truly Christians in hearts and minds, in all of our whole beings, as God’s beloved children and people, those whom He had called and chosen.

In our first reading today, we heard of the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Romans, in which the Apostle reminded the faithful people in Rome that they are all recipients of God’s various gifts and blessings, and of all the opportunities which He has presented to us. God has blessed us with many wonderful things and we should be appreciative of whatever it is that He has granted to us. We must always strive to be faithful to Him and to do what we can do so that we can use those gifts, blessings and opportunities which God has freely given to us. This is because ultimately, we will be judged and held accountable based on what we have been given and what we can do for our fellow brethren and for our communities.

This means that we must not be idle in living our faith and life, and we have to do what we can so that we may impact the lives of other persons around us in a good and faithful way. We should always act in ways that are in accordance to God and His path, and obey His Law and commandments in all things, not just only the letter but also appreciating, understanding and implementing the spirit of the Law. However, this is easier said than done, as many of us tend to do things that are against the Law, or merely doing things of our faith without appreciating their importance and significance for us. Our faith is one that requires us to be truly immersed in the Lord’s teachings and ways, and to follow Him wholeheartedly, and not just paying Him lip service.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the story of Lord Jesus Who was teaching His disciples and followers using a parable, in order to tell them how everyone has been called to the banquet of the Lord, to enjoy everything that the Lord has prepared for them, the joy and happiness meant for them from the beginning. However, as we heard in that parable, those who had been invited to the banquet of the master refused to come to the banquet and made excuses as of why they could not come, and refused to do what the master had told them to do. Hence, that was why those people had no place at all in the banquet which had actually been prepared for them. Instead, their places were given to all those gathered from the streets and other places.

This parable represented and symbolised how God had called everyone to His kingdom, welcoming all of them into His presence. God did not exclude anyone, but welcomes all to come to Him. Those who had already had place in the banquet were representing the Israelites, the ones whom God had first called among the nations, to be His disciples and followers. But some among those people refused to obey Him and disregarded His Law and commandments, and the Lord wanted to make a point that everyone, and not just the Jewish people, all of them have the chance to enter into the kingdom of God, provided that they all are willing to embrace the Lord and His path. God has always been kind and loving towards all of us, and He wants all of us to be reunited with Him. But in the end, it is our choice whether we want to embrace His love or not.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all reflect carefully on what we have heard in today’s Scripture passages. Let us all consider carefully what we have been presented with, and let us do what we can so that in our every actions and efforts, we will always put the Lord as the focus and emphasis of our lives, and do our very best at every moments so that we may truly serve Him by following what He has shown and taught us, in our every efforts and good deeds, all the time. As Christians, we should be worthy examples of our faith and beliefs in God, and we should help to lead others towards the Lord, by our own good inspirations and actions that may encourage others to come closer to God and His righteousness.

Let us all therefore first of all give thanks to God for having called and brought us all close to Him. Let us thank Him for having shown us His love and mercy even when we have not deserved them. Let us all be reminded of everything that He has done for us, what He has taught and shown us to do, so that we will draw ever closer to His path, and follow Him ever more courageously, fervently and sincerely in each and every moments of our daily lives. We are all called to be good examples, in all of our words and actions, in our every interactions with one another so that our lives may truly be life-giving and full of love, both for God and for our fellow brethren, all around us. Are we able to do this, brothers and sisters? To do what God has asked and commanded us to do? And not only obeying Him externally and for show only?

May the Lord be with us always, and may He empower each one of us to live ever more worthily in His Presence. May He encourage and strengthen each one of us so that by His guidance, wisdom and providence, all of us may always continue to walk down the path of righteousness and virtue, in obeying His Law and commandments, despite the trials and challenges that we may have to face amidst our journey in life. May God bless our every efforts and good works, and may He guide us all that we will always strive to follow Him and His loving examples, in being good and faithful Christians, as His disciples and followers, and as shining beacons of His light and truth to our darkened world. Amen.