understanding the faith

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Sunday, 15 February 2026 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we come to the sixth and the last Sunday before the beginning of the season of Lent this coming Wednesday, each and every one of us are reminded of the need for all of us as Christians, as the Lord’s faithful disciples and followers, all of us need to truly obey the Lord in the Law and the commandments that He has given to all of us, His beloved people, in the manner that we truly understand, appreciate and know the full meaning and purpose of all that He has laid before us. We must not be those who merely pay lip service of our faith and belief in the Lord, and at the same time we must also not be like those who obey the letter of the Law but fail to truly appreciate and understand its spirit.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the passage taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, in which the prophet spoke of the matter of obedience to the Law and the commandments of God as I had just mentioned, and how God has given His people, the Israelites back then and now also all of us, all of us who have chosen Him as our Lord and Master, believing in His truth and teachings. We should always believe in Him wholeheartedly and with true understanding of His Law, His ways and all of His precepts. As prophet Sirach mentioned, God has given us all the freedom to choose our paths and choice of actions in life, but He has also made it clear that if we side with Him and follow Him, we will be blessed while those who choose to go against Him will face their just consequences in the end.

We are reminded that we should not be merely literally understanding the Law of God without truly appreciating and understanding what He has placed in our lives, the Law and the commandments by which He wanted to teach us all on how we can be His better disciples and followers with each and every moments we have. We should not blindly follow Him without truly understanding His intentions, how He wants each and every one of us to understand His most wonderful, genuine and pure love, so that we ourselves may love Him in the same way, in loving our fellow brothers and sisters around us as well, and especially in how we love those whom He has given us to love, those who are truly precious and beloved to us in our lives.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Corinth, the words of the Apostle to them all regarding the matter of the wisdom which God has given to all of us which far surpasses any kind of worldly wisdom, intellect and understanding. God did not give us all the spirit of confusion or ignorance, but rather the Spirit of Wisdom and clarity, in proclaiming His truth and love, His Good News and revelation to all of us without exception, as He has always revealed His love and gentle presence in our midst, calling on all of us to follow Him wholeheartedly and with great and true faith in Him.

Through what we have heard, we are reminded that we should not put our trust only in our worldly understanding and finite wisdom and knowledge of this world. It is not that the wisdom of the world has no merit or virtue, as they can indeed be good and wonderful sources of insight and knowledge, but we must always fall back upon the wisdom of God, the great and Divine Wisdom and truth which He has provided us, and which He has bestowed on us through His gift of the Holy Spirit and the revelation that He has passed onto us. All of these have made us all to be capable of understanding and appreciating His Divine design and will for us, and it is therefore important that we should all discern carefully our paths in life.

Finally, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which we heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples and followers, and all those who followed Him of the need for all of them to truly appreciate and understand the meaning, purpose and intention of the Law of God which they had been given and entrusted with by the Lord. He spoke about all these in the context of how the people of that time had not been practicing the Law in the manner that the Lord has intended them to, especially their leaders and those entrusted with the guardianship of the Law, like the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees.

Instead of obeying the Law faithfully as they should havem they allowed themselves to be swayed by worldly concerns and matters, and focusing themselves so much more on the literal aspects and details of the Law, the customs, practices and the ways that were added over the many centuries since the Law was revealed and passed down to the people of Israel through Moses. They bothered themselves and focused so much on the minute details of the rituals and practices of the Law, and was so rigid and unbending on its implementations that they ended up forgetting about why those laws and rules were established and given by the Lord in the first place. Not only that, but they were also arbitrary in the manner how they exercised those laws and rules to suit their preferences.

That was why the Lord made it clear before all that they ought to truly understand what the Law of God had been meant for, to lead and guide all of the people of God towards Him and to teach them all to love Him and one another wholeheartedly. And it is meant to show how they should live their lives with virtue and righteousness, with sincerity of heart and mind, living worthily at all times and following the commandments with true understanding and appreciation, doing their best to walk in the path of God’s righteousness and grace. That is why the Lord was very critical of those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who often made use of the Law and the commandments to glorify themselves in the eyes of the people, and failing to apply them properly and worthily.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore as we conclude our reflection for this Sunday and prepare ourselves ever more wholeheartedly for a truly fruitful upcoming season of Lent, let us all therefore continue to strive to lead a truly holy and worthy life before the Lord. May the Lord continue to bless us in our lives and guide us all in our respective paths so that we may continue to walk ever more faithfully in His Presence, becoming good role models and inspirations for one another. Amen.

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Saturday, 14 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded once again that we should always put our faith and trust in the Lord, and not in the things and ambitions of this world, all of which can seriously lead us away and astray from the right paths in our lives, just as our predecessors themselves had shown us. Those who allowed themselves to be swayed by those worldly temptations and ambitions would end up falling further and further away from the path towards God, and that is not what we should be doing in our lives. Instead we should put our trust, faith and hope ever deeper in the Lord, and remind us all of His constant love and compassion.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Kings of Israel and Judah, we heard of the story of the reign of King Jeroboam of Israel, the same Jeroboam who had been instructed by the Lord through His prophet Ahijah to take ten of the twelve tribes of Israel and rebel against Solomon and the House of David, all because of the sins and wickedness of Solomon, whom while he had been faithful in the earlier years of his reign like that of his father David, but in his later years, he had resorted to worldly ambitions, means and desires to fulfil his ever growing ambtiions and pursuits. All of those things ended up drawing him further and further away from the path of righteousness.

However, Jeroboam himself did not do any better than Solomon. After he had secured the kingship and rule over the ten northern tribes and broke the kingdom of God’s people in two, he became afraid and fearful that the people and kingdom that he had secured would end up falling back to the hands of the House of David when they all flocked to the Temple that King Solomon built for the Lord in Jerusalem, then the capital of the southern kingdom of Judah. That was why as we heard in our first reading today, he decided to built two shrines in Bethel and Dan, at the northern and southern parts of his dominion, to serve as rival temples and national shrines of the northern kingdom. Further still, he even made golden calf idols in each places to serve as the ‘gods’ that the people ought to worship.

And all of those things were directly contrary to what the Lord has taught and shown His people, and was not what God intended for Jeroboam to do. Jeroboam led the people into sin by leading them astray with worship of idols in those shrines he established, and in not following the Law and commandments that God had placed before all of them to follow and obey. All of these happened because of the same insecurities, worldly desires and ambitions which afflicted Solomon beforehand, and which also afflicted Jeroboam as well, that led them astray down the wrong paths. Therefore, it is an important reminder to all of us as well as Christians, that we should be vigilant and careful that we do not end up walking down the same path.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the well-known miracle of the multiplication of the loaves of bread for at least four thousand people if not more, and there were only seven loaves of bread available to feed all of them. Like the similar miracle of the multiplication of the five loaves of bread and two fishes for the five thousand in another occasion, in this time, the Lord miraculously multiplied those bread loaves after praying and blessing over the bread, showing the power of God’s Providence and Love for all those people who had come to seek Him, for His guidance, healing and miracles. God did not abandon His people in need, and He showed it all through His Son.

This is the wonderful manifestation of God’s ever generous love and compassion towards all of us. He has shown us the perfect manifestation of that love through Christ, His Son, the Saviour Whom He has promised and sent into our midst. Despite our sins and wickedness, and all that we have done against Him, the Lord has always been merciful, compassionate and kind towards us all. That feeding of the four thousand was yet another example of just how loving and kind God has been towards us, and we should never take it for granted. We should always remember that we should love the Lord in the same manner as well, and love our brethren in the similar manner too. That is what we are all called to do as Christians at all times.

Today we can also look upon the great examples set by two of our holy and faithful predecessors, namely that of St. Cyril and St. Methodius, the two great servants of God and missionaries of faith, who are also the Patron Saints and Protector of the heart of Christendom in Europe. They were remembered for their dedication and great works in bringing the Christian faith to the people in Central and Eastern parts of Europe, the areas inhabited by the Slavic peoples, which by the efforts of St. Cyril and St. Methodius became Christians, which remain so until the present day. These two saints had travelled through many parts of the then still pagan Slavic lands, calling on many people to come to believe in the Lord.

St. Cyril and St. Methodius dedicated themselves to the Lord and to the mission entrusted to them, and they both spent their lives to minister to the people among whom they had been sent to proclaim the truth of God, and they were also remembered for their role in translating the texts of the Sacred Scriptures into the local Slavic language and in the development of the Cyrillic alphabet which are still in use until this day, helping many people not only in the matter of the faith but also in the development of their statecraft and nationhood. Their contributions and hard work were truly inspirational and all of us Christians can do well to follow in their footsteps and heed their examples, to be truly good and worthy disciples and followers of the Lord in all things.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore heed the examples of the saints, particularly those of St. Cyril and St. Methodius in everything that they had done, and also from whatever we have just discussed about earlier in the Scripture passages we received, so that we may truly realise how we can truly be obedient to the Lord faithfully at all times and not merely paying lip service to Him, and be ever more genuine at all times in everything we say and do, so that we may lead more and more people towards God and be the good role models and inspirations that we are supposed to be as Christians. May the Lord bless our every good endeavours and efforts, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 13 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are reminded through the readings of the Sacred Scriptures of the need for all of us to follow the Lord faithfully in our lives and distance ourselves from sin, which can lead us astray and lead us down the path to ruin if we are not careful about it. This is why we are all reminded of the dangers of sin and the harm that can be caused by us indulging in our worldly pleasures and desires, which can prevent us from realising that we have not been living our lives well and worthily in the manner that the Lord has called each and every one of us to do in His own purposes and distinct ways. All of us are reminded that after all, as Christians, we must always be full of love for God and also for our fellow mankind at all times.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Kings of Israel and Judah, we heard about the story of Jeroboam, a man from the tribe of Ephraim who was a superintendent working under King Solomon. Through the revelation given to him as we heard from the prophet Ahijah and through his own discovery of the growing discontent of the people of Israel against the increasingly oppressive and exploitative reign of Solomon, Jeroboam eventually took up plans to rebel against Solomon, and later on when this was found out by Solomon, Jeroboam had to hide in Egypt until Solomon has passed away. Back then, Solomon in the later years of his reign has become lax in his ways and obedience to God, allowing himself to be swayed by worldly ambitions and other temptations which led to the downfall of the kingdom.

One of such actions that Solomon had done was to tax his people heavily and to exact lots of demands from them such as manpower for his armies and the labours needed for his many magnificent building projects, of palaces, fortresses and other infrastructure buildings, which although all those things seemed to benefit the kingdom as a whole, later on in Solomon’s reign, this became a sign of megalomania and obsession with power and glory that Solomon had grown accustomed to as he grew further in might, stature and wealth among the other nations. Essentially, his ego and pride, his desires and ambitions became his undoing in preventing him from truly obeying the Lord and acting responsibly and faithfully as his father David had done.

That was why the Lord was angry at Solomon and wanted to teach him and his descendants a lesson by breaking up all the glory and majesty that was the golden age of ancient Israel, Solomon’s glorious and wealthy Kingdom. It is not because Solomon had many wives or all sorts of that, but because first and foremost, he had forgotten to put the Lord first and foremost in his life, and instead indulging in seeking more wealth and glory, and at the same time, he also caused misery and hardships for those whom the Lord had put in his care and entrusted under his rulership as king. That was why the Lord was angry against Solomon, because he had misplaced the trust that the Lord has entrusted to him, and committed grievous sins against not just Him but the people of God as well.

Then, our Gospel passage today speaks about the moment when the Lord Jesus encountered a deaf and mute man at the region of Decapolis, and He took pity on the man, opening his ears and mouth with the famous word, ‘Ephphata!’ which means ‘Be opened!’ and thus the man could speak and hear once again. In that instance we saw how God rescued His beloved people who had been suffering and enduring difficulties, showing them His constant caring love and compassion, which He has never ceased showing unto each and every one of us, each and every moments, wanting us to be freed and liberated from all the darkness surrounding us, which has kept us all separated from Him and His love.

I am referring to the condition which we all also share, a condition which caused us all to be also in a sense ‘blind’, ‘mute’ and ‘deaf’, that is our sins. The man suffering from the physical muteness and deafness was healed by the Lord, and he could hear and speak once again, and in the same way, the Lord also has the power to heal us from our sins. In fact, it is only the Lord alone Who can do this, as He is the only One Who can forgive us all our sins and therefore make us truly whole again, in body, spirit and in all of our whole beings. That is why even when we may be physically very fit and without any defects unlike that man who was deaf and mute, but we are all suffering from this spiritual affliction of sin which is even more dangerous.

At our baptism, traditionally this ‘Ephphata’ rite was carried out by the celebrant and officiant of the baptism, where the same actions of the Lord was done by the priest upon the person to be baptised, to show symbolically that the person that embraced the Lord through his or her baptism had indeed been brought from their past of sins and wickedness into a new life where their senses and whole bodies are no longer afflicted, blinded, impeded by sins. And all of us have received the wonderful love and grace of God, in which we have been equipped and strengthened amidst all these darkness with the light of God’s Hope and Love, calling upon all of us to follow Him ever more wholeheartedly from now on.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore do our very best to live our lives ever more faithfully in the manner that the Lord has called and shown us to do. Let us not allow ourselves to be swayed and deluded by the temptations of worldly glory and ambitions as Solomon had fallen into and as many of our predecessors had done. Let us instead embrace the Lord wholeheartedly and do our very best to be good examples and inspirations to one another in faith. May the Lord bless us all and may He strengthen each and every one of us always in the faith, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 12 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures we are reminded that each and every one of us can always fall into the temptations of sin and the corruptions that come along with it. And if we are not careful, we may end up falling deeper and deeper into the wrong path, and hence, we need the power of God, His mercy, love and compassion to help us overcome this obstacle in our respective paths towards the Lord and His salvation. That is why we are being reminded again today through these passages so that we can always be vigilant and ready against all the obstacles facing us in our journey of faith and life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Kings of Israel and Judah the continuation of the story of the old Kingdom of Israel. And if in the previous days we heard about the glorious days and times of the reigns of David and Solomon, and how King Solomon inaugurated the Temple that he built for the Lord with a lot of great fanfare and celebration, and how the whole people and all the country rejoiced greatly on the great deeds that the Lord had done for them, then today we heard the unfortunate story of how in his old age, Solomon became lax in the manner of how he lived his life and reigned as King of Israel, likely swayed by his many accomplishments, glory and power that made him to forget and overlook what his responsibilities were as the King appointed and chosen by God.

We were told that King Solomon was swayed by his many wives and concubines which numbered in the hundreds, as was common practice at that time and in many cultures even to the present day. But regardless of that, what matters was that Solomon allowed worldly concerns and considerations to affect and influence his decisions and choice of actions. That was what the Lord was disappointed with and that was why He told them that all the glory and power that was Solomon’s, the glory and golden age of Israel, all would be taken away and shattered, all because of his hubris, pride and ambitions, which distinguished him from his father David. David himself was not a perfect man, as he had his own share of faults and mistakes. But David always tried to rectify them and he always kept the Lord as the priority in his life and reign as King.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we are reminded through the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, of the interaction between the Lord Jesus and a Syro-Phoenician woman, who had come to the Lord seeking Him, begging Him and beseeching Him to heal her very sick daughter. And the Lord was seemingly very dismissive and rude towards her, not listening to her pleas and requests, and even as we heard, uttered words such as the food should not be given to the dogs, which literally degraded her as being less than a human being. At a glance, it might seem that the Lord was out of His character and was very mean and degrading in what He said to the Syro-Phoenician woman, but in truth, He was making a statement about the then common prejudice among the Jewish people about their non-Jewish neighbours.

For at that time, many among the Jewish people, especially the Pharisees among them and some others, had carried on from their ancestors a rather prideful and haughty attitude, full of arrogance and ego, thinking that because they were the chosen people of God, then they assumed that they were better than all the others particularly their neighbouring peoples whom at that time did not believe in God and typically worshipped pagan gods. They looked down on all those and also historically, because during the reign of the Greek kingdoms and rulers, such as the Seleucids, their ancestors had been persecuted for practicing Jewish customs and practices. Hence, some of them took their practices and ways to the extreme.

And in doing so, they had forgotten what it truly means to be genuinely faithful to God, focusing so much on the externals which led to the criticism that the Lord raised against them, forgetting that all the rituals, steps and details in their faith practices were not what truly mattered. To many of the Pharisees, if one did not follow the Law exactly in the manner they prescribed, to the letter and the sequence, to the details such as how they washed their hands right all the way to their elbow, it was considered unlawful and wicked. They missed entirely the point of the Law being guiding principles and means to help the people to regulate their lives and way of living them so that they could truly be worthy of their Lord and Master, and be the worthy recipients of all that He has promised to them.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us should also not be swayed in the same manner by our many egoistic and ambitious desires in life, all the things which may distract us from being able to follow the Lord wholeheartedly and genuinely. We must remember that the path of the Lord requires all of us to resist the worldly desires, ego and all the worldly pleasures and its excesses that can lead us astray. We have to strike a good balance between living a faithful life to the Lord and in fulfilling our responsibilities in this world, while not giving in to the extremes such as the indulgence of worldly desires, or in neglecting our responsibilities, and that is what we are all called to do as Christians.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father continue to guide each and every one of us, so that we may continue to faithfully obey His commandments and ways, and to do what is right and just in our lives, resisting the temptations of worldly glory and desires, so that we do not end up falling into sin as how King Solomon and the Pharisees had experienced and suffered from. Instead, let us all trust ever more in the Lord our God, and do our best to live our lives with great humility and faith from now on. May God bless us all in all things we do, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 11 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, marking that well-known Apparition of the Mother of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary at the site of Lourdes in rural southern part of France. This Apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes happened over a century and a half ago, in the mid 19th century, as Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes appeared before a young peasant girl named Bernadette Soubirous, now better known as St. Bernadette, revealing her true nature and intentions to her. Despite the many challenges and doubts that St. Bernadette faced back then, eventually the Church acknowledged the vision and Apparition to be authentic, and celebrated universally as the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, with the site of Lourdes itself becoming one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the world.

Our Lady often appeared throughout history during times of great trials and hardships for the faithful people of God and for the world in general. She appeared in Hispania in the years of the persecutions against Christians during the earliest days of the Church to St. James the Apostle, now known as the Apparition of Our Lady of the Pillar, when Mary, who was probably even still living in the world back then, appeared to the Apostle to reassure him and to strengthen his resolve in proclaiming the truth of God to the people that he was ministering to. Mary also appeared in Guadalupe in Mexico, during the years immediately following the post-Columbian European expansion into the American continent, the New World when wars, conflicts, pandemics and other factors led to the sufferings and deaths of untold millions. Back then it was also right in the midst of the Protestant reformation when the Church became divided and splintered due to heretical teachings of those so-called reformers.

In all those occasions and others, the Blessed Virgin, Mother of God appeared to various people including that at Lourdes because she wanted to show us all the love of God and remind us of everything that her Son had done for our sake, in His sacrifice on His Cross out of ever pure and enduring love for each and every one of us. Despite our many transgressions and stubborn attitude in rejecting His kindness and love, God has always loved us regardless, and desired that each and every one of us may find our way back to Him, to be reconciled to Him, and at the same time He has also entrusted all of us to the loving care of His mother Mary, just as He had done so from His Cross. This way, each and every one of us are beloved and dear to her, and receive from her the most tender love that she has shown her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

In Lourdes, Our Lady appeared to the young, fourteen year old Bernadette Soubirous in the grotto of Massabielle where the Shrine to our Lady of Lourdes now stands. St. Bernadette initially did not know who it was that called her and appeared to her, but as she continued to meet Our Lady of Lourdes on more and more occasions, listening to her speaking and revealing more about herself, St. Bernadette kept on coming back to meet the Apparition of Our Lady. On this date, the eleventh day of February, was the date of the first apparition, and in total eighteen apparitions of Our Lady happened, and as people began to hear about the apparition of the Lady dressed in white with blue sash as encountered by the young St. Bernadette, they started to come to the site of the Apparition.

In one of the apparitions, Our Lady told St. Bernadette to dig the ground at that area and drink from the spring that would come forth from the ground. St. Bernadette did so faithfully and although it made her to appear dishevelled with mud, and dismayed some of her supporters, but the spring that came forth at the grotto site of the Apparition quickly gained a great reputation for healing, as the waters that came forth from the spring brought about quite a number of miraculous healings that scientists and doctors later on could not explain by whatever means, and the Church later certified as being authentic and miraculous in nature. That was the beginning of the famous healing miracles at Lourdes, and the beginning of the popular pilgrimage to the site of Our Lady’s Apparition, which drew millions of pilgrims and more every year.

When met by skepticism and doubt by the Church authorities, on the date of the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord, Our Lady told St. Bernadette Soubirous that she is the Immaculate Conception, which stunned the authorities, the local bishop and priest who therefore became convinced of the authenticity of the Apparition, as the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was just proclaimed by the Blessed Pope Pius IX four years prior to the Apparition, and at the age and time back then, with much more difficult communication and transport, there could have been no way for an illiterate young peasant girl like St. Bernadette to know this truth about the Blessed Virgin, the Immaculate Conception, unless the Apparition was indeed truly of the Mother of God herself.

From then on, for the next a century and half and more until today, Lourdes had become a place visited by innumerable pilgrims and Christian faithful, with various reasons, and many among them sought healing from their physical troubles and maladies. Many were cured miraculously by their faith in God, and with the help and intercession of Our Lady of Lourdes, His mother, who is also our loving mother. That is why today, on this World Day of the Sick, on the Feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes, each and every one of us are reminded of God’s love for each one of us, which He has reassured us in many times, and which He lavished on us through the help of none other than His own mother Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, we are all seeking for healing for our various maladies and sickness, our various illnesses and troubles in life.

And even, just as we seek for God’s healing for us, among those of us who are perfectly fit physically and mentally, there is still the sickness of our souls, the corruption of sin that has always been ever present all around us. All of us mankind are sinners be it great or small sins that we have committed, or whether few or plenty in terms of the amount of sins we committed. Not only that, but it is the Lord alone Who is able to heal us from our sins, as while doctors and other means may heal us from our worldly sickness and troubles, no one can forgive sin save that of God Himself. Hence, each one of us on this day are reminded that we who are in need of God’s healing and mercy, all of us should come to seek Him wholeheartedly, and to humbly entrust ourselves to Him with the help from His most loving Mother Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes.

Let us ask then, for our blessed and loving Mother to pray and intercede for us, who are sinners and afflicted with many sickness and troubles, foremost of which is our corruption by sin. May Our Lady of Lourdes continue to pray and intercede for us sinners, and for those afflicted by various maladies, illnesses and sickness, all throughout the world. May the Lord have mercy on us and heal us from our troubles, and help us to come back to Him, and to be reunited with Him, in perfect bliss and happiness one day, free from the troubles of our flesh and our souls, pure and perfect once again. Amen.

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Tuesday, 10 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Scholastica, Virgin (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are all reminded that we should be truly faithful and committed to God beyond just merely having superficial faith, or worse still faith that is not centred on God but on ourselves and our ego like how the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done in the past. All of us should learn to be humble and truly obedient to what the Lord has shown and taught us. We should not allow our pride, ego, ambition and worldly desires to influence and mislead us down the wrong path in life, simply because we cannot resist those temptations and falling ever deeper therefore into the slippery slope and path towards damnation and destruction.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah, we heard of the prayer which King Solomon offered to the Lord for His Providence, love and kindness to all the people and to him as King, in everything that He had done in extending His ever patient love and forgiveness to the people whom He truly loved and cared for, despite their stubbornness in constantly disobeying and rebelling against Him. God’s love did not cease just because of all that, and instead, He truly loved us all the more and went all out to seek those who had been separated and lost to Him because of their disobedience and sins.

King Solomon gave thanks to God for Him having willed to come and dwell amongst His people, as the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the grand Temple that he had built for the Lord. The Ark of the Covenant symbolised God’s Presence among His people, and that grand Temple, prepared and planned by David, Solomon’s father, and finally built and realised by Solomon himself, was meant to be the tangible centre and heart of the Kingdom of God’s people, and to where they all would come to worship the Lord their God, their Master and Creator. And King Solomon interceded on behalf of the people asking for the Lord’s mercy and forgiveness for their many sins, and for His continued presence and love among them.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus heavily criticised the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law for their way of interpreting, practicing and applying the Law and commandments of God according to their own interpretation and preferences. They were too strict and rigid in implementing the Law and its statutes, focusing so much on the externals and appearances that they neglected to understand and appreciate the true meaning and intention of the Law, and why God has given His Law and provided them to His people in the first place. God never intended for the Law to make it difficult for His people or to burden them unnecessarily.

In fact, He meant for the Law to teach and show them, to guide and lead them on how to love Him and one another in the same way that He has loved all of them. That is why we are reminded today that our faith and how we observe it must always be rooted firmly in the Lord and not be tainted and swayed by the temptations of worldly glory and ambitions like how the Pharisees had done. Those Pharisees used their piety and their way of observing the Law to be comparison and to judge against those whom they deemed to be less than worthy, which usually meant anyone else who did not practice the Law in the same manner as they had done. This is not what we should be doing as Christians, as we should be faithful and obey the Lord while also loving our fellow brethren at the same time, without any prejudice or bias.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Scholastica, a holy and devoted woman whose life and examples had inspired many throughout the history of the Church. St. Scholastica was the fraternal twin sister of St. Benedict of Nursia according to Church tradition, who was another great saint of God and who was widely considered as the Father of Western Monasticism. St. Scholastica herself was renowned in her own way for her great piety and commitment to God, for her dedication and faith, which had inspired many others to follow her examples to a life of holiness and grace, resisting the many temptations of worldly glory, pleasures, fame and ambitions, and instead, seeking God wholeheartedly and turning themselves into the right path.

While the details on her early life was rather scant, but St. Scholastica eventually joined religious life much like St. Benedict, and she was credited with the foundation of the Benedictine nuns, which mirrored her brother’s role in founding the Benedictine monks and monasteries. St. Scholastica led a quiet and contemplative life in prayer, committing herself in prayer and study of the Scriptures, through which she inspired many other women of her time to follow the Lord in the same way, rejecting the excesses of wickedness and evils of the world, all the worldly temptations, pleasures and comforts, that they may all lead a holy life with the Lord, caring for one another in a holy community of the faithful consecrated ones to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired by the good examples, piety and faith which St. Scholastica has shown us, in all of her life and work, dedicating herself wholly to the Lord and to His path. Let us all reject the temptations of worldly power and glory, and remind ourselves that we do not end up being swayed by all those things and fall into the path of sin and evil. Let us instead deepen our relationship with God, by spending more quality time with Him, through prayer, charity and almsgiving, and by our exemplary way of life at all times. May God be with us always, and may He bless our every good works and efforts, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 9 February 2026 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that we have our loving and most compassionate God Who is always with us all, His beloved and chosen people. God is always ever in our midst, in our communities, in our presence and in everything that we do. In each and every moments of our lives, God is always ever present, and He has never abandoned us, no matter what, even when we ourselves have been disobedient and unfaithful in our own lives and in our lack of faith and dedication towards Him. God has always freely given Himself to us all, in a most generous and wonderful way, just as He has shown throughout all of history.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah, we heard of the moment when the grand Temple that King David had prepared and his son, King Solomon had built for the Lord, finally came to completion and everything was finally ready for the grand inauguration and opening of the Temple of God, as well as for the transfer of the Ark of the Covenant, the Ark of God itself, where God’s Presence descended upon, as the tangible and real presence of God amongst His people. This was the moment long awaited by the people of God, and was the very important moment when God Himself came to dwell among His people, at the heart of the capital of the Kingdom of Israel.

We heard about the grand celebrations and the festivities which accompanied all the preparations to welcome the Ark of the Covenant into the Temple that King Solomon had built for the Lord. The whole people from the King down to the lowest among the members of the community all rejoiced greatly because the Lord has been willing to dwell among them, and how He has always blessed and protected them all throughout time and history, never neglecting and abandoning them even when the Israelites themselves had been unfaithful and lacking in trust and obedience to Him. We are reminded through these that this is the same kind of joy we should also have in us and experience because we know that God has always provided for us in all things.

That is why we should always keep in mind that God should always be at the heart and centre of our lives, our every actions, and we should alwys remember that God never abandons us no matter what, and each one of us are precious to Him. This is why we should not be afraid to reach out to Him and to seek His help and guidance especially whenever we are facing lots of hardships and difficulties in life. It is by trusting in the Lord that we can truly find our path in life and gain true joy and security in all things, which the world cannot provide to us. We must always believe that God is always ever present in our midst, helping and providing for us, guiding and strengthening us even through the darkest and most difficult moments we may be facing.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel of St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the account of the actions of the Lord Jesus and His disciples as they carried out their works among the people of God. They went around from place to place serving the people, as the Lord went to reach out to those who had looked out for Him for healing and hope, caring for them and strengthening them all, so that they all could regain their strength and courage, to trust once again in God Who has always loved them so patiently and generously. And unlike the old Ark of the Covenant mentioned and highlighted in our first reading passage today, what the people had before them was no less than the Lord Himself in the flesh, manifesting perfectly His Love through His Son, incarnate as the Son of Man.

While the Old Ark of the Covenant was crafted from the finest materials and containing the two slabs of stone on which the Law of God was written, and also the miraculous heavenly bread, manna, and the staff of Aaron, the staff of authority over the people of God, in Jesus Christ, the Saviour, the perfect Manifestation and Revelation of God’s everlasting Love for us, we have seen in person and in the most tangible way, the Law of God made flesh, the Bread of Life and Lamb of God Who has sacrificed Himself for us and offered Himself for us, His own Most Precious Body and Blood offered for our sake on the Cross, and our Good Shepherd, the One Who guides us all with authority, love and compassion towards the Father.

That is why we should really be grateful that God is so loving towards us that He has willingly come into our midst, showing us all that He truly loves us all and cares for us even after our lack of faith and commitment towards Him. God does not abandon us in our time and hour of need, and He will always be there for us no matter what happens. We should appreciate that we are the beloved children of God, and hence we should also be full of love, compassion and kindness to everyone just as our loving God and Father had done towards us. We should always be exemplary and loving at all times, and be the worthy bearers of our Lord’s truth, Good News, love and compassion in our world today, manifesting further what He has shown us through His Son.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all reflect upon the message of the Sacred Scriptures that we have received earlier, let us all therefore continue to strive to love the Lord our God first and foremost, with all of our hearts, with all of our strength and with everything we have, remembering how He has loved us first in the same way and intensity, and then we should also, as Christians, love one another in the way that we have loved the Lord and ourselves, especially those whom we love the most. May the Lord our most loving God and Father continue to bless us all and strengthen us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Sunday, 8 February 2026 : Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that as God’s people, each and every one of us are called to be ever faithful and committed to the commandments and Law that He has shown and taught us, and to follow Him and to trust Him in whatever that He is leading us all into in our respective lives. Each and every one of us share the responsibility as disciples and followers of the Lord, in doing whatever we can, even in the smallest and seemingly least significant things so that by our actions, examples and our every deeds, we may indeed inspire in many other people the hope and faith that we all share in the Lord.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the Lord told His people the Israelites clearly through Isaiah of what they were all expected to do as His holy and beloved people, to be exemplary in their way of life, righteous and just in dealing with one another. They should not cause harm and hurt to others around them and they should not act unjustly, in exploiting and benefitting from the sufferings of others unlike what people always commonly do in this world. At that time, during the time of the ministry of the prophet Isaiah, the people of God had been facing lots of sufferings because of the sins of their predecessors and their own, as they lived their lives in according to worldly ways, in not following God’s Law and commandments.

Hence, that was why God sent His prophet Isaiah and many others to help remind the people of what they ought to do as those whom God had called and chosen to be His own, and with whom God had made His Covenant out of His ever enduring and patient love for each and every one of them. God wants each and every one of His people, and therefore all of us included, to follow and obey what the Lord Himself has shown and taught us all to do, in offering ourselves and our actions, our everyday moments in life for the greater glory of God. We should live our lives worthily that we may truly be 

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Corinth, in which the Apostle spoke of everything that he had done among them as a missionary for the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Saviour Whom God has sent into this world to reveal all about His salvation and grace. St. Paul told the people of Corinth that he came to them with no other intentions or any other missions than to proclaim the truth and Good News of the Saviour, Jesus Christ, and to show all of them what He has brought into this world, the promise of salvation and eternal life which God has gracefully revealed to us all through His most beloved Son.

And through this short passage from the Epistle to the Corinthians, all of us as Christians are reminded that we too share in the same mission of St. Paul and the other Christian missionaries, in our own unique and distinct ways, in the various means, opportunities and paths that God has provided and shown to us. All of us should strive to do our best to embrace God’s calling, in doing our best to be good role models for one another as God’s beloved people, and as the shining beacons of His truth and love in our communities today. We must realise that our every actions, words and deeds do matter and they truly embody what it is that we believe in, and we should always mean what we believe in that our faith may truly be alive and well, at all times.

Finally, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord to His disciples and followers, and the people who were listening to Him that they all ought to be like salt of the earth and light of the world, using these parables comparing salt and light and their importance to how all of us as the followers of the Lord should not be lukewarm but be truly active and committed in living our lives as Christians. These are the two commodities that are still important and crucial today, but which were even more indispensable and important back then. For without salt and light, the world at the time of the Lord Jesus cannot operate much, as salt and light both played very important roles in the communities of the people, in everyone’s homes and in many activities involving daily living and actions, in work and more things, more than what we may need of those two things today, that is salt and light in our lives.

First of all, salt is used as an important flavouring agent, which is necessary to impart taste and flavour to food which could usually be rather bland tasteless. Salt is also important for the body in order to replenish certain ions and substances that our bodies require in order to function properly. While salt may be easily available these days and many even have problems of excessive consumption of salt, back then, many people did not even have steady supply of salt, as salt production was rather difficult, labour intensive and tightly controlled by the state back then, and without modern technologies that allowed mass production of salt, salt became a rather expensive commodity that was widely sought and desired, and was truly a precious item back then. Salt was also used in the preservation of food, which was important in the era before the advent of effective refrigeration as is present in our world today.

Meanwhile, light was also something very important as although light is abundant from the Sun during the daytime, but at night time, light was often lacking, as even the full brightness of the Full Moon and the stars of the sky paled in comparison with the brightness of the Sun. Night time was therefore often dark, particularly during the time when the Moon was not visible. The roads and the areas outside towns and villages were often very dark and treacherous, filled with all sorts of wild animals and predators, and nobody dared to travel alone or in the dark without the guidance of any light, in the form of lanterns and torches, which could provide assurance and protection for anyone who wished to travel in the dark times. Otherwise, people would rather wait until the morning before they continued to travel. And this was the reality of a world before the advent of electricity and easily available lighting from electricity, a world that we may not be truly familiar with.

Hence, imagine just how useless it is for salt to lose its taste and flavour, its saltiness and hence the ability to give flavour and to prevent food from spoiling and becoming bad. How useless and pointless it is also therefore for light to be hidden without been used to dispel the darkness wherever they are needed, for this light to be hidden and not used as a source of inspiration, hope and assurance, in the times of darkness. What the Lord wanted to say to us in providing this parable to us all through His disciples is that, our lives have to be meaningful, virtuous, righteous, good and just, filled with the virtues and righteousness of God, with Christian values and goodness, with all the things that the Lord Himself has shown and taught us to do. However, many of us as Christians are still ignorant of this calling and this mission which each and every one of us have in this life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we are therefore called and reminded yet again by the Lord to be active in living our Christian lives, full of commitment and devotion to God, and full of the sincerity and the desire to serve the Lord, and to do what He Himself has taught us to do, and to make it such that our every words and actions in our respective lives truly become great sources of inspiration and good examples for others to follow, just like the salt of the earth and light of the world. God has provided each and every one of us with so many distinct and unique sets of gifts, talents, abilities, blessings and opportunities, giving us many chances to make good use of them for everyone’s benefits and for the greater glory of God. Now the question is, are we willing to embrace God’s call and are we willing to follow Him and walk in His path, faithfully and with conviction?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence help one another to remain firm in faith and to be ever more active in reaching out to our fellow men and women, in our respective communities and in whatever areas that we are able to contribute in. Let us no longer be ignorant of the many opportunities and chances that God had provided us in being able to live up to our Christian mission and calling. Like the Apostles, St. Paul and many other holy men and women of God, let us all truly be the flavourful salt of the earth and the ever wonderful light of the world, proclaiming the love and truth of God, in our daily living, in our every words, actions and deeds, at all times. May God be with us all and may He bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, as salt of the earth and light of the world. Amen.

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Saturday, 7 February 2026 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded of the need for all of us to seek the Lord for His Wisdom, guidance and strength at all times. Each and every one of us as members of the Body of Christ, the one Church of God are called and expected to trust God in His Wisdom and help, in everything that He would lead us through, and to believe in whatever that He has entrusted to us to do, in our various and respective calling, vocation and paths in life. Each and every one of us have been given unique and distinct gifts, talents and opportunities by the Lord, Who has entrusted them to us so that hopefully we may make good use of them in our own communities and in whatever areas we are in our lives.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Kings of Israel and Judah, we heard from the prayer of the young King Solomon just not long after he had taken over from his father David the kingship over all of the land and people of Israel, the chosen people of God. The young Solomon was still very inexperienced and lacking in confidence to lead and rule the people of God, and as his father had been very successful overall in his reign, in his many achievements and reputation, therefore, it was only natural for Solomon to feel some kind of uncertainty and fear over the responsibilities that he had to bear and shoulder as the new ruler of the Israelites.

But as we heard from that same passage, Solomon chose to put his trust in the Lord, humbly asking Him when the Lord told and asked Solomon of what he would request of Him, be it wealth, glory, power or wisdom, that he would seek God’s Wisdom and ability to discern what is right or wrong, and what is just and righteous in the way how he would rule as king, in following the examples of his own father David. That was why God bestowed upon Solomon not only what he sought for, the prayer and request for Wisdom, but also the greatness, glory, power and wealth that He would grant onto him, just as God Himself had granted to David, his father. Solomon as King would indeed be known for his unparalleled wisdom and wealth.

That is why, in the same manner, all of us as Christians, in each and every areas of our responsibilities, in whatever the Lord has called us to do, we may always strive to put our trust and faith in Him no matter what. We must not be afraid or fearful as just how Solomon gained courage, wisdom and strength from God, and was blessed in everything that he would do in this world, we too will be guided in the same manner by the Lord, in the unique ways and pathways that the Lord will be leading us through, even if we cannot yet see what and where it is that He is leading us into. What we can certainly be sure of is that if we trust in the Lord and do our best to carry out whatever it is that He has entrusted to us then certainly we shall do wonderful and great things for the benefit of many around us.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we are reminded from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, highlighting to us what the Lord and His disciples had carried out and done throughout their ministries among the people of God. The Lord and His disciples were often inundated with work and responsibilities in their ministry and work, and this was to the point that they were not even able to take a proper meal and break. And yet, as best as they could, they still tried to find the place and time for quiet retreat and silence, and the Lord Himself also often went to secluded and quiet place to pray to His heavenly Father. And then, as we heard from that Gospel passage, the Lord showed great compassion, love and mercy on all the people who had come to Him.

He saw all the desire of the people to come seek healing and consolation in Him, all the people who were the lost sheep of the Lord, all of whom were like scattered and lost sheep without a shepherd as highlighted in our Gospel passage today. And the Lord Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Who is our loving and devoted Good Shepherd, having been sent into our midst by our loving Father in Heaven, we can find true refuge and hope, compassion and love, in knowing that we are never alone in this world, and no matter what and no matter how dark and difficult the situation may be for us, there is always hope for us all in our loving God, Who has shown us the way forward through Him, and in giving His own Son to be our Good Shepherd, leading all of us towards salvation through Him and in Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we really have to appreciate the love that God has shown us all and how He has manifested it all through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Our Saviour and Good Shepherd, Who has shown us the wonderful nature and the ever patient and generous love that God has always had for us. We can see that in how the Lord Jesus patiently taught all those who came to Him to listen to Him, and healed all those who had been brought to Him, even when He and His disciples were physically tired and exhausted. And therefore we can really be assured and we can know just how much we are truly beloved by God and in the same manner therefore, we should also strive to love the Lord and do our best to love one another as He has shown us.

Let us all therefore be exemplary in all of our actions through life, and strive to be good examples of being faithful and worthy Christians in our every actions, words and deeds. Let us all in every things we do, even in the smallest and whatever may seem to be insignificant to us, we always do them with great faith and courage, devoting all of them to the Lord for His greater glory. Let us never doubt what the Lord can do for us, in all His guidance and help, in His blessings and everything that He will provide for us if we truly trust in Him and desire to walk in His path. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours at all times. Amen.

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Friday, 6 February 2026 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Paul Miki and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are being reminded that each and every one of us as Christians, that is as those whom the Lord had called and chosen, all of us ought to live our lives as best as we can according to what He Himself has shown and taught us to do. We should always be exemplary in our every actions, words and deeds. We may not be good and steady at all times, and we are imperfect by nature, but that does not mean we cannot strive to do our best to live virtuously and righteously as our holy predecessors had done. We must remember that even the greatest of the saints were themselves sinners and they also struggled with sin, but they did their best to overcome it and following the Lord ever more faithfully.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard of the conclusion of our past few weeks’ readings from the story of the life of the first Kings of Israel, Saul and David, particularly that of David, whose life, reign and exploits as king we have heard in these past few weekdays. King David was born in a family in Bethlehem in Judah as the youngest son and did not seem destined for great things, but he had great love for God and for his fellow brethren, and God called him to be the one to lead and shepherd His people Israel, as the King to succeed Saul in ruling over the people of God. And we heard from the prophet Sirach a summary of David’s life and reign, in how he has been truly an exemplary servant of God.

And we heard how David remained firmly faithful and full of love for God and His people, and while also acknowledging his sins and faults, being an imperfect person he was just as we all are, David has always allowed the Lord to guide him in his path and correct him whenever he had fallen into his faults and mistakes, in his sins and disobedience against God. And God therefore chose him to be the ruler over all of Israel, and established a new Covenant with him and his family, much as He had done with Abraham and his descendants, that the rulership over Israel would always belong to his line and family, something that the Lord kept firm and true, and up to the coming of the Messiah, Our Lord Jesus Himself, Who was born into the House of David and therefore brought the promises of God to perfect completion.

Then, in contrast, we heard from our Gospel passage today the story of how the faithful servant of God, St. John the Baptist was martyred at the hands of the then king of Galilee, Herod and his unlawful wife, Herodias, who was the wife of Herod’s brother Philip. It was highly implied and also by historical evidence that Herod married Herodias when Philip himself was still alive, and hence such a union was considered as improper and also adulterous in nature. When St. John the Baptist criticised the king and the queen, Herodias especially took offence at the opposition and criticism from the man of God, and wanted to kill him whenever she had the opportunity, while Herod was the one who was still considering and treating St. John the Baptist with respect even when he had imprisoned the latter.

We heard then of how Herodias had her chance when Herod was hosting a banquet and became drunk, when Herodias set her own daughter to seduce the king and obtain from him promises and oaths which then became his own trap, as Herodias through her daughter demanded that Herod execute St. John the Baptist right away and bring her the man of God’s head on a platter. And that was how Herod and Herodias both committed great sins against God by their refusal to follow the Lord and obey His Law and commandments, and instead, giving in to the temptations of worldly desires, pleasures and ambitions, something that we have been reminded to be careful of and to be vigilant against.

And as Christians, all of us are called to shine with the light of God’s truth and love, and our lives should be sources of inspiration and hope for many others, in how we live our lives centred on Him and His Law and commandments, and how our actions, words and deeds truly proclaim the glory and greatness of God, and full of the same love which God has lavished on us and which we now are expected to embody and show in our own daily living as well. We have the saints and the martyrs throughout the history of the Church to look upon for examples, and today in particular, I want all of us to look upon the great examples shown by St. Paul Miki and his Companions, the Twenty-Six Holy Martyrs of Japan, who were martyred a few centuries ago in terrible persecution, and whose faith and courage inspired many ever since.

St. Paul Miki and his Companions in martyrdom lived through during difficult time to be Christians in Japan. After having enjoyed a great period of flourishing and rapid expansion, which saw hundreds of thousands being converted and brought up in the Christian faith in Japan, during the last years of the Warring Periods, the authorities then under the leadership of Toyotomi Hideyoshi began to become suspicious and hostile against Christians, and began a period of increasingly intense persecution against the followers of the Lord. Due to the misunderstandings and political rivalries at that time, and fear of the foreign influences, Christian missionaries and laymen alike were persecuted, and twenty-six of them, including St. Paul Miki, a Jesuit seminarian studying to become a priest, were arrested and condemned to death.

They were ordered to march from the Imperial Capital of Kyoto towards the city of Nagasaki in western part of Japan, where the biggest Christian population and community was, a distance of almost a thousand kilometres on foot, while being tortured and humiliated along the way. Yet, St. Paul Miki and his Companions remained firm in their faith and stayed courageous and true to their commitment to God, and it was told that they sang the ‘Te Deum’ hymn all throughout the entire journey to their martyrdom. In Nagasaki, atop the hill where a shrine now stands in their honour, the Twenty-Six Holy Martyrs were crucified and impaled with lances, and were martyred for their continued dedication to God, glorifying God by their faith and life. They inspired many other Christians who remained firm in their Christian calling and devotion.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard of the great faith and conviction of the Holy Martyrs of Japan, St. Paul Miki and his Companions, let us all therefore dedicate ourselves to the Lord in the same way as well. Let us all commit ourselves to live our lives most worthily so that we may indeed glorify the Lord by our lives, and that we may carry out whatever vocations and calling that the Lord has called us all to do, and blessed us with the gifts and talents for. May the Lord continue to guide and strengthen us in our journey of faith through life. St. Paul Miki and Companions, Holy Martyrs of Japan, pray for us! Amen.