understanding the faith

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Wednesday, 13 May 2020 : 5th Week of Easter, Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, the thirteenth day of May we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, in commemoration of the very first Apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the place known as Fatima in the countryside and remote place of Portugal near the city of Leiria. At that time, in the year of Our Lord 1917 was the third year of the First World War, or what was then known as the Great War. At that time, the War has raged on for three long years and many millions had perished in the battlefield, while many millions more were suffering from poverty, unemployment, hunger and famines, diseases among many others.

Then, on that one fine day, the thirteenth of May of that year, as three young shepherd children were walking in the fields, they saw the Apparition of a beautiful Lady which seemed to be a truly supernatural experience for them. Prior to this, they had also received three apparitions from the Angels of God, who had taught them several prayers and revealed some things to them. But beginning from the thirteenth of May, the Blessed Virgin Mother of God herself appeared to the three children.

Mary, later to be known as Our Lady of Fatima in honour of her apparition spoke to the three children and revealed to them the urging for everyone to pray the Holy Rosary and also devotion in order to bring an end of the Great War and also restore peace to the whole world. There had been too many conflicts and bitterness among men, and there had been way too many deaths. There had been too many tragedies and enmities among men. And there would be even more in the years and decades to come after that moment.

That was perhaps why Mary chose to appear to the three children of Fatima, St. Jacinta Marto and St. Francisco Marto, and Servant of God Lucia dos Santos. She appeared to them at that most difficult of moments to remind us all mankind that God would not abandon us all in our time of greatest need. And she herself appeared as a reassuring and loving Mother to calm us all down, and to help show us the way out of the darkness and into the salvation and liberation through her Son.

Our Lady of Fatima appeared every month, on the thirteenth of the month with the message calling on all people to be devoted once again to God and to turn away from their sinful ways, and in particular to pray the Holy Rosary devotion to help to bring peace and to seek God’s loving intervention and grace to turn away our misfortunes and to drive away all the darkness and destruction from the world. Our Lady of Fatima called the faithful to repent from their sins and to be devoted once again to God.

Many people came to believe in the words of the Apparition of the Blessed Virgin, and many would come to see the Apparition every month, led by the three children of Fatima. Soon, a crowd of hundreds and then thousands of people flocked to the Leiria and Fatima region, and the devotion quickly spread and became known. Eventually this would culminate in the great ‘Miracle of the Sun’ which happened at the last Apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, and was witnessed by tens of thousands of people.

Among the messages and revelations of Our Lady of Fatima was the renowned ‘Secrets of Fatima’, one of which involved the Consecration of Russia to the Blessed Virgin, as well as the prophetic revelation of how Pope St. John Paul II was almost assassinated over six decades later on the exact date of the first Fatima Apparitions, namely the thirteenth day of May. Through all these, the Blessed Mother of God wanted to reach out to all of us her children, out of her love and concern for us.

Through these revelations, Our Lady of Fatima revealed the bitter sorrow that we the faithful and the world had to face, just as the great scourge of Communism would rise in Russia in that very year, and gripped the whole world many tragedies that lasted many decades as Communism spread all around the world and led to many persecutions of Christians under their care. Many people suffered and had to practice their faith in hiding, evading the authorities and many were martyred as well.

Now that all these tragedies, challenges and difficulties encountered by many of our predecessors in the past century had become part of history, we are called then to turn towards the Lord once again through the guidance of His Mother Mary, Our Lady of Fatima. During the first five months in this year alone, we have encountered so many troubles and difficulties from all directions, particularly the still terrible coronavirus pandemic that is still raging all around the world.

At the time of the Great War, just not long after the Apparition of Fatima, one of the most deadly pandemics in the history of the world struck, caused by the influenza virus and known as the ‘Spanish Flu’, which ended up causing tens of millions of deaths during its more than two years of spread worldwide. Although comparatively the impact of the current coronavirus pandemic seemed to be much milder due to our vastly improved medical facilities and technologies, but people still died from the current pandemic and many more are suffering.

And this is coupled with all the other troubles, natural disasters like floods, volcanic eruptions among others, as well as other forms of difficulties that had come all around many communities. We certainly have heard how there are many people out there who are struggling to keep themselves, their families and their loved ones supported and afloat. Many of them had even lost their jobs or received temporary suspension of their work and pay, or being given significant pay cuts that made it difficult for them to take care of their families sufficiently.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is now that we are called to remember again the words of Our Lady of Fatima, calling on all of us to pray more fervently and be more devoted at all times. Amidst the difficulties and challenges we are probably facing and enduring right now, let us all have more faith in God, trust in Him more and worry less about many things in our lives that are beyond our control. Let us entrust ourselves to the Lord through His Mother Mary, Our Lady of Fatima.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all pray the Holy Rosary especially during this blessed month of May, the month of the Holy Rosary, following what Our Lady of Fatima herself had told us through the three children of Fatima. Let us all pray fervently and inspire one another to pray, that God, in His mercy, may be moved to help us and deliver us from our troubles. Let us all be hopeful in Him that as long as we have faith in Him, we have no need to fear anything, be it the terrible pandemic or anything. Instead, let us all live our lives to the fullest and exercise Christian virtues and charity wherever and whenever we can.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He, through the intercession of His Mother Mary, Our Lady of Fatima, deliver us all from our darkness and troubles, and lead us into a new light and a new existence in His love. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 12 May 2020 : 5th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Nereus and St. Achilleus, Martyrs and St. Pancras, Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we heard of the promises of the Lord reassuring all of His disciples and therefore all of us His faithful ones that He will always be with us and will be faithful to the Covenant He has established with us and our ancestors. And this is indeed a very important and powerful reminder for each and every one of us as at the same time we are also reminded that being Christians will likely lead us down the path of many challenges to come, if we have not already experienced them.

In our first reading today, we heard how the Apostles St. Paul and St. Barnabas encountered trouble during their missionary journey, as they were harassed and attacked by the Jewish people from Antioch and Iconium who incited the pagans and Gentiles to attack the two Apostles as well which resulted in both of them almost being killed by the masses. Thankfully by God’s providence and protection, the two of them managed to survive and they went on to another place.

Yet, that did not dampen their spirit and they remained firm in their commitment to serve God. If we noticed carefully, as both St. Paul and St. Barnabas went back towards Antioch, one of the important early centres of Christianity, they passed through the same city of Lystra and Iconium, where they had encountered troubles with the Jews and others who had almost persecuted them to death just earlier on. And in Antioch itself there had been many other forms of difficulties the Christians had encountered, just as how it was in Judea and Jerusalem.

Many among the faithful had suffered greatly because of their faith in Christ, either because they encountered stiff opposition and anger from some among the Jewish communities as well as from the Jewish authorities, some of whom were very strongly and ardently opposed to the Lord Jesus, His Way, ministry and teachings. In addition, they also encountered challenges from the pagans especially the pagan priests and ardent worshippers who saw the Christian faith as dangerous threat to their own popularity, authority, way of life and their pagan deities.

And to the Romans, who were the rulers and overlords of much of the known world and the Mediterranean region then, the rapid growth of Christianity were also often viewed with much suspicion and distrust, as the Romans also tended to group the Christians, especially during its earliest days with the Jews, whose rebellious ways and growing tensions almost resulted in uprisings and open rebellions during the earliest days of the Church. It was amidst all of these challenges and trials that the early Christians lived and professed their faith in God.

The Apostles strengthened and encouraged the resolve and faith of the people of God as mentioned in our first reading today, by reminding all of them of God’s providence and love, His faithfulness and commitment to the Covenant and the promises He had made with all of them. The Apostles encouraged the people of God and reassured them with the same reassurance from the Lord than even though they might be suffering the effects of the rejection and persecutions of the world, but the Lord was always with them and He would guide them through all the way.

And this was how so many courageous saints and martyrs came to be throughout the long history of the Church especially during times and moments of great persecutions. And today alone we are celebrating the feast of three of these great servants of God, who have all suffered martyrdom for their faith. They are St. Nereus and St. Achilleus, as well as St. Pancras, all the martyrs of the Lord from the earlier years and time in the Church.

St. Nereus and St. Achilleus were servants of a niece of the Roman Emperor Domitian, one of the early Roman Emperors, during whose reign the Apostle St. John wrote the Book of Revelations during his exile at the island of Patmos. St. Nereus and St. Achilleus were secret Christians who were probably persecuted by the early Christian persecution especially during the reign of that Emperor Domitian, who after Nero was the second Emperor to carry out harsh persecution against Christians. Those two faithful followers of God suffered and were martyred.

Meanwhile, St. Pancras, also known as St. Pancras of Rome was a young Christian man who was martyred under the reign of another Roman Emperor who was notorious for his particularly harsh and terrible persecution of Christians, namely Emperor Diocletian. He was forced to offer sacrifices to the Roman pagan gods and to the Emperor, then treated as if equal to the pagan deities, but St. Pancras, who was still just a teenager then, refused to do so.

The Emperor was really impressed with the courage and dedication showed by St. Pancras that he promised the teenager a lot of wealth and power if he would only abandon his faith in God. But St. Pancras still remained firm in his faith and would not be swayed or tempted by the Emperor’s offers, and in the end, he was also martyred by beheading, a true Christian and a devout son of God to the very end.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what all these three saints and martyrs had shown us is that suffering and persecution in some form will be inevitable in our journey and life. However, we must not lose faith or focus, and we must always remember that God is always by our side, protecting us, providing us with our needs among other things. That was how those faithful servants of God remained firm in their faith despite the challenges and sufferings that they had to face.

Let us all be inspired by their examples, their great courage and faith, and let us all be more committed and faithful in following the Lord from now on. May the Lord be with us always, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to be ever stronger in our piety and desire to love Him with all of our hearts, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 11 May 2020 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scripture, we are called to renew our faith and devotion to God, to renew our focus and emphasis on the Lord, to turn once again to Him with all of our hearts, to be faithful in all things and at all times. We are all called to put God as the focus and emphasis of our lives that we live our lives with God at the centre and we have to be genuine and firm with our faith and dedication at every moments of our lives.

In our first reading today, we heard of how St. Paul and St. Barnabas had faced difficulties and challenges during their missionary journeys, facing the plots and oppositions from the Jews among the communities who were opposed to their works and their Christian faith. They had to flee and find another place to continue their works, and as they came to Lystra and Derbe in the region known as Lycaonia in what is known as Asia Minor, they encountered another challenge as described in the passage today.

As they performed a miracle that healed a man from his sickness, the whole town came to know about it, and they all heralded both St. Paul and St. Barnabas as the coming of their pagan Greek gods in the human form, namely that of Zeus and Hercules, some of the most popular deities in the pagan Greek mythology, in which the gods frequently came down to the world in human and other forms, and they thought mistakenly that the two Apostles were these gods.

St. Paul and St. Barnabas immediately insisted that they were neither gods or the heralds of the gods as the people thought they were. They refused to accept the offerings, sacrifices and the treatment that they received at the hands of the locals who worshipped them as if they were their gods walking on earth. Instead, they courageously and firmly preached to the people to turn away from their false and useless worship of the pagan idols and gods, and to embrace the one and only true Living God, the One Who created the universe.

The people refused to listen to reason and to the words that St. Paul and St. Barnabas had preached to them, still insisting on offering the two Apostles the sacrifices as if they were their pagan gods to the dismay of both Apostles. This showed us the immense challenges that the Apostles and missionaries of the Lord faced, as they encountered stubborn attitudes and difficult-to-change ways of life throughout their missions and journeys. Yet, as we can see, despite their most wonderful and most royal treatment by the people, the two Apostles remained firm in their conviction and faith.

Certainly as a human being, no one could not have been tempted by such a treatment, being treated like god walking on earth, treated as if they owned the whole world and everything they asked for would have been easily given to them. But St. Paul and St. Barnabas both had the right focus and emphasis in their minds and in their hearts, and that is their unwavering faith and commitment to God. Surely they must have been tempted, but their faith was strong, and they remained committed to spread the truth of God and the Good News.

They have faithfully kept the commandments of God, and they also remained faithful to Him, as the Lord Himself mentioned in our Gospel passage today. Indeed, the Lord showed that those who are faithful in Him will be blessed and God will guide them throughout their journey and works, and that was what St. Paul and St. Barnabas had experienced, that despite their difficulties and challenges, the wisdom and the strength of the Holy Spirit helped them greatly and enabled them to carry on through with their missions.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all now reflect on our own lives. Are we able to follow the Lord faithfully just as how the Apostles had followed Him and dedicated themselves to Him? Are we able to resist the many temptations being present in this world all around us that we will stay faithful despite the challenges and the pressures for us to be unfaithful and to abandon the Lord? We have been entrusted with the same mission to continue the work of the Apostles, to bear forth the truth of God to our fellow men.

Let us all thus be inspired by the courage and faith of the Apostles, and let us strive to dedicate ourselves ever more to God. Let us resist the temptations present in life and this world, and do our very best to follow God with all of our hearts and with all of our strength, putting Him at the very centre of our existence and lives. May the Lord continue to guide us and give us His strength that we will be able to carry on our journey in life faithfully as His true and dedicated witnesses to the nations, like that of the Apostles, saints and martyrs. Amen.

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Sunday, 10 May 2020 : Fifth Sunday of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, the Fifth Sunday in the season of Easter, all of us are called as Christians to turn our focus on Christ, our Lord and Saviour, to put our faith and trust fully in Him as our Master and to entrust ourselves in His providence, for the love and mercy He has shown each and every one of us. The Lord has shown us His ultimate proof of love and commitment, through the gift of His Son to be our Saviour. By His suffering, crucifixion and death, Jesus has delivered us all from the certainty of death and destruction.

Everything has been revealed to us through Christ and His disciples, as He Himself revealed it all before His Apostles and disciples throughout His ministry, and therefore from them, the truth has been passed on through the Church and the faithful for countless generations and finally the same truth has also been handed down to us, as the faith we all now believe in. We all believe in the same faith that the Apostles themselves believed, that Jesus Christ is the Messiah or the Saviour Whom God has sent into the world, and that He is also the Divine Son of God, incarnate in the flesh as the Son of Man.

But as we can see, the disciples themselves were not able to fully comprehend at first all that they have heard and witnessed from the Lord and His actions, and as shown by St. Philip the Apostle, many among the disciples did not yet fully comprehend and appreciate the fact that the One Who had been with them all the while, was none other than One of the Holy Trinity Himself, God incarnate in the flesh. That was why St. Philip, who was in fact one of the most intelligent and educated among the Apostles asked the Lord to ‘show them the Father’, to the Lord’s dismay.

St. Thomas, ever the doubter and the last to believe, also showed his lack of faith, even saying things like ‘we do not know even where You are going’, as a clear sign that he did not really have a strong faith in his heart, and he was not committed to the Lord. And we also should remember how the same Apostles also abandoned the Lord in fear when He was arrested, even after all of them had just promised Him in the Last Supper of their faith and fidelity, with St. Peter even saying that he would readily give his life for Him.

Yet, this was before they were given the help from the Advocate, as the Lord promised His disciples that He would send them the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, Who would give them wisdom, courage and strength, as well as the guidance in what they ought to do in carrying out His commandments and His will. The Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles and the disciples on the day of the Pentecost, fifty days after the Resurrection of the Lord and ten days after He had ascended into Heaven.

With the gift and help of the Holy Spirit, the Apostles and the disciples carried out and fulfilled what the Lord Himself had told them, that they would do works even far greater than what He had done in His brief earthly ministry. He has commanded all of them with His Great Commission to go forth to the nations and baptise them all in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, before He ascended to Heaven, that while He ascended and they could not see Him anymore, but He would always still be with them, and He would guide them to do whatever He has commanded them to do.

The Lord helped and strengthened them, and they began the foundation of the Church, with more than three thousand people being baptised on the Pentecost alone, and many more came to believe in the Lord through whatever the Apostles had done, in their courageous preaching and testimony of faith, in the miracles they have done in the Name of the Lord, among many others. And as the community of Christians across Judea, Jerusalem and other places grew, so did the Church and its supporting structures.

That was why in our first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard of the institution of the Holy Order of the Diaconate, as the Apostles appointed seven holy and devout men to be the first Seven Holy Deacons of the Church. And the most renowned among them was St. Stephen, who would later on became the very first martyr of the Church, as described in detail in the same Acts of the Apostles. St. Stephen defended his faith vigorously and with devotion when he was faced with bitter opposition and false accusation by the enemies of the Church, and died a martyr.

The Holy Spirit gave St. Stephen great wisdom and courage that stunned even his most ardent and stubborn enemies, as they could probably not believe the courage that this deacon had shown when he was alone facing all of those who were crying out for his death. And the same happened to the other Apostles as well, as they carried out their missions with great joy and dedication, suffering and dying in martyrdom in distant lands in various occasions. The only Apostle to die of old age, St. John the Apostle himself endured many trials, sufferings and prisons all throughout his years of ministry.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us are called to remember the great courage of the Apostles, as well as that of St. Stephen and the many other saints and martyrs of the Church. Many of them were simple, regular people, and many among the Apostles were poor people, uneducated and unknown, ordinary and as we have discussed earlier, had lots of fear and doubt, and unable to commit themselves. But they turned to the Lord, put their faith in Him and chose to follow Him wholeheartedly even though at first they were unsure, doubtful and afraid.

In turn, the Lord strengthened them, gave them great wisdom and courage, helping them to persevere through the challenges each of them had to face. When we heard all the amazing stories of faith and the dedication of the many martyrs of the Church, they all showed courage and fearlessness even in the midst of suffering and death, and many among them still did what they could to do the will of God and show their faith to convince others to also believe in God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of these were possible because they all trusted God and put Him at the centre of their lives and existence, trusting Him to guide their lives and their path, and they had therefore that genuine faith which all of us Christians should also have in our own lives. However, the sad truth and reality is that so many of us have been lukewarm in our faith, and many of us have treated the Lord as One Who is distant and to be sidelined. We only remember God when we are in great need, and when we do not need Him, we leave Him behind and continue with our own worldly concerns and works.

We have become too preoccupied with many worldly and materialistic concerns and thoughts, and we have no time or attention to be spared for the Lord as we should have. When we need Him is the only time we actually remember Him, and we demand Him to quickly come and intervene for our sake and benefit, and when we do not get what we want, we often become angry with God and abandon Him ever the more. This is not what we should be doing, brothers and sisters in Christ.

On this day, we are all thus called to remember the examples of the early Christians, as well as the many holy saints and martyrs who had given their all to the Lord, who have put their trust in God and dedicated themselves to God. We are called to see how the Apostles and those whom the Lord had called to be His followers, had been transformed from a people filled with fear and uncertainties, with doubts and infidelities, with sin and darkness in them, into people who are truly belonging to the Light of Christ, virtuous and exemplary in their piety and courage.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all realise that God can transform each and every one of us in the same manner, and indeed, we are called to walk in the same path that the Apostles and the saints and martyrs of the Lord had walked on, and we are called to continue the mission which He has entrusted to us all, His beloved people and Church. He has sent us all to go forth to the people of all the nations, to proclaim His truth and salvation to everyone, that more and more may come to believe in Him and have eternal life.

Let us all pray to the Lord today, that He will continue to guide us and strengthen us with the Holy Spirit, that with His wisdom and encouragement, we will be drawn ever closer to His presence and that we will be able to dedicate ourselves to do whatever we can in our capacity and respective areas of responsibilities, in our communities and in our families and among our friends, to be the bearers of the Good News of God and the witnesses of His truth and resurrection by our own good examples and faithful life.

Let us all be the beacons of light and hope for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ especially during these few weeks and months when there are so many people out there who are troubled and without hope, who are in difficulties and who have encountered even personal tragedies and troubles. Let us bear God’s light and hope to them and share our hope, faitu and joy with one another, that we will endure these together with God. May God bless us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 9 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this occasion today as we continue to live through the glorious season of Easter, each and every one of us are continuously reminded that as Christians all of us have the obligation to be the bearers of God’s truth in our lives and within our every communities. We are all called to follow the Lord with all of our hearts and to show our faith through our every words, deeds and actions. We must no longer be lukewarm in our faith but instead we must live our faith with ever greater enthusiasm and zeal from now on.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us have known God and the truth about Him has been revealed to us all through His Church, through the same Apostles to whom God Himself had revealed Himself. Those Apostles and many other disciples had followed the Lord, witnessed His many wonderful works and miracles, and through the revelation of truth and the wisdom of the Holy Spirit they had received knowledge and understanding of the Truth and the salvation of God through Christ.

It is from these Apostles then that all of us, many people had received the truth and the Good News of salvation of God. St. Paul and St. Barnabas among the many other missionaries of the faith had travelled far and wide, and preached the Good News in various places and communities. But at the same time, as we heard in our first reading today, they did not have it easy and had a lot of challenges as they carried out their mission. They encountered tough opposition from the Jewish community in one of the cities they visited during their missionary travels.

At that time, many of the cities and towns across various parts of the Mediterranean region and beyond had sizeable Jewish populations and communities, as the descendants of the Israelites spread during the few centuries since their exile in Babylon and in further lands, and during the past few centuries of increased openness and migration patterns during the Hellenistic era that lasted through the early years of the Christian Church and faith. Just like the Jews in Judea, Jerusalem and Galilee, the Jewish diaspora communities were also divided in their outlook of things, their way of life and the diversity of their thoughts.

Quite a few among the Jews were open minded and they were very receptive of the foreign practices of the Greeks, the Romans and the other Gentiles, and in fact some even adopted some of these practices themselves, while others had been pretty much assimilated into their respective greater societies. Meanwhile, there were also quite a few among the Jews who were still very conservative then, keeping closely to the traditions and customs of the Jewish people, much like the Pharisees in the land of Israel. In fact, some of these Jewish diaspora were themselves likely to be member of the Pharisees, like that of St. Paul himself before his conversion.

That was why, the Apostles encountered a lot of resistance during some parts of their travels and works, as some of the Jews carried on the same attitude and prejudices of the Pharisees, while others might have heard the news of what had happened in Judea and Jerusalem, and toed in the line of the Sanhedrin and the Jewish elders in rejecting Jesus and His teachings. This went even to the extent of those people inciting a riot in the city and also spread false news in order for the whole town to reject and cast the Apostles out of their place.

This was just some of the challenges that the Apostles and the disciples then had to face, as they also encountered tough challenges and oppositions from the Gentiles. While quite a few among the Gentiles were willing to learn more about the faith and some were very enthusiastic in welcoming Christ into their hearts and into their communities, there were also quite a few of those who disliked the Christian faith and viewed it as a threat against their own pagan faith, worship and also way of life. And hence, persecution, challenges and oppressions came from many origins for our first Christian brothers and sisters.

Yet, these did not dampen their spirits or their courage to continue to preach the Good News and reaching out to others, even to those who have rejected and persecuted them. The first Christians, the many saints and martyrs walked in the path of the Apostles and that of St. Paul and St. Barnabas, fearlessly being witnesses of their faith in God in all occasions, and because of this, countless souls had been saved and many more were brought closer to God’s salvation.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, we have been entrusted with the responsibilities to carry on the good works of our devoted predecessors. Are we able and willing to follow in their footsteps in serving God? Are we able to spend the time and effort to be the bearers of the Good News and the witnesses of our Lord’s truth and resurrection to all those whom we encounter in life? Let our every words, actions and deeds be exemplary and bring hope to many people around us.

May the Lord be with us always and may He strengthen us in our resolve and courage to live our lives with faith and dedication from now on. May the Lord bless us all and may He guide us in our journey of faith, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 8 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day from the words of the Sacred Scriptures, all of us heard the message of truth and hope, the message of God’s salvation that He has revealed to us through Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life. In what we have heard today, we heard the reassurances from God that He will always be faithful to the Covenant which He had made with us and He will always provide for us and what we need, and He will not abandon us to destruction.

In our first reading we continue to hear the story of the encouragements that St. Paul spoke to the Jewish community in Antioch in Pisidia, telling them of bow although the people in Jerusalem had treated Jesus, the Messiah and Lord badly, rejecting Him and condemning Him to death, a most painful and humiliating death on the Cross, but God has turned all of that into joy and salvation, as everything had indeed been part of His plan of saving us mankind.

God has loved us so much and provided us with so much all these while, brothers and sisters in Christ, and we have to understand and appreciate all of these. But God has been always so patient with us despite all of our disobedience and lack of faith. He has given us reassurances again and again, as He said to His disciples in our Gospel passage today, to trust Him and to put their faith in Him despite the doubts they might have had. St. Thomas, one of the Apostles, ever the doubter and last one to believe expectantly asked the Lord if they should trust in Him.

And the Lord said that He is indeed the Way, the Truth and the Life. It means that the Lord is the only Way for us to go forward, and He is the Truth that all of us should be following, and the Life that we have all been looking for. The Lord is the heart of our existence and everything we have, have come from Him. It is just that many of us have been ignorant of this truth, and we prefer to follow our own path and way rather than to trust in God and obey Him.

That is why on these days, when the world is indeed filled with so much darkness, uncertainty and fears all abound, when everyone are so frightened and worried over so many things, we must be the bearers of the Good News of the Lord’s hope, truth and salvation. We must be the beacons of God’s light in the midst of all these darkness, at we may shine God’s light on all who have been afflicted by the darkness, that everyone may have hope again, and hope that lasts because this hope comes from God.

There are many people out there who are in despair and low on hope, low on love and care, and it may be up to us to show them the way out of their despair, and to bring God’s love, compassion and encouragement to them. This is why we should really have that strong and genuine faith in each one of us that we may truly proclaim God’s glory through our every day lives and actions. As Christians we have been called to bring hope to our fellow men in their moments of distress and to help others to know God and to find Him when they are in need.

Let us therefore put our complete trust in God from now on, knowing that in Him alone we can find true way and path out of the predicaments and trials we are facing now. We must believe that God will help and guide us in our journey, and if we trust in Him we shall not be disappointed. We must ourselves be patient, because everything will happen as God wills it, and God wants only the best for us. Let us all keep up our hope in Him and trust in Him no matter how difficult our lives and conditions may be at the moment.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all bring the hope of Christ into our lives, by living our lives to the fullest, showing care and concern for the least, the last and the lonely among us. Let us touch the lives of others around us, through our own faith and inspiring examples. Let us fear no more and follow the Lord in the path that He is showing us. Let us trust in Him, our Way, our Truth and our Life from now on.

May God be with us always and may He guide us in this journey of faith and in our lives. May He bless us all, now and always in our every good works and endeavours, and may He help us all to bring His hope and light to our fellow brothers and sisters that the Light He has brought unto us may triumph over the darkness of our lives. Amen.

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Thursday, 7 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the words of the Scripture we have been reminded to follow the Lord and obey His ways and teachings, walking in the path of truth that He has shown to us all. We have all been given this wonderful truth and shown the most marvellous love of God through Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, by Whom we have been saved and by Whom we have been given the assurance of our salvation and eternal life.

In our first reading we heard of the powerful testimony of faith made by St. Paul as he visited the Jewish community in the city of Antioch in Pisidia in Asia Minor, one of the numerous Jewish communities established after hundreds of years of spreading of the Jewish communities throughout many parts of the Mediterranean. As a renowned young Pharisee in his younger years and born in Tarsus in Asia Minor, St. Paul was certainly known to many in the Jewish diaspora communities, and even after his conversion to the Christian faith, he must have certainly still retained some of that renown and respect.

That was why in that occasion, the Jews there in Antioch in Pisidia welcomed St. Paul and even asked him if he had any words of encouragement for them, in which then St. Paul spoke of the coming of the one true Messiah of God, namely Jesus Christ in Whose Name he has been preaching and travelling around all those while. St. Paul began by reminding the people there of God’s story of salvation, and how He had always guided His people from the time of Moses and beyond.

St. Paul told the people of God in Antioch in Pisidia who at that time were still waiting for the coming of the Messiah of God, promised to come to save the people and restore Israel, that the Messiah had in truth already come, in the person of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all. As Jesus and His disciples only restricted their ministries and works within the lands of Judea, Samaria and Galilee, and only after His resurrection and Ascension that the disciples were sent out to the other parts of the world, it was not surprising that many might not have known about Christ yet, even within the Jewish diaspora communities.

St. Paul spoke of the fulfilment of God’s revelations and promises given through His servants and prophets, the promises He made to David, His servant and others, the promises He had given to the people of Israel and Judah in their times of distress. And these must have been very uplifting and been awaited for by all those people who were in distress, having to endure the wait for the coming of the Messiah and for also knowing the recent not so pleasant history of what the Jewish people had to undergo.

Therefore, all of us are also reminded that we have also received the same message of truth and encouragement from the Lord through our faith. We believe that through Christ, everything is possible and that we will never be disappointed if we trust ourselves and our lives in the Lord’s care. Now, let us all look around us and see how during these difficult days, whether we can be like that of St. Paul in how he encouraged the Jewish community in Antioch in Pisidia with his words of encouragement.

We live during these difficult weeks and months, when so many all around the world are suffering from the effects of the global pandemic. Many people have died from the pandemic, and many have lost their loved ones. Parents have lost children, children have lost their parents and elders, and others have lost relatives and loved ones to this disease. And there are also yet still many other troubles that the world has been currently facing in our various communities, all the troubles with our economy and our employments.

Many people have lost their jobs or were forced to take significant pay cuts and reduction in their allowances. Many people do not even know if they can still sustain their current employment and livelihood to the next day, and some are worried that they may not even live and survive to see the next week or the next month, less still the next year. Many people have been suffering mentally as they have to remain isolated and work from home among others, taking care of their families while struggling to cope with feeding them and sustaining their work.

Are we able to bring to all of our fellow brothers and sisters, this hope that we have received from the Lord? Are we able to bring God’s light into this darkened world and awaken hope once again in the hearts of many? In order to do this, we need to embody this hope within our own beliefs, our every words, actions and deeds. How can others believe in us if we ourselves have not been wholehearted in believing that we have this sure hope in God?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as Pope St. John Paul II once famously said, that we are all Easter people and Alleluia is our song! This reminds us that no matter what, no darkness can ever overcome or last against the true light of Christ. God has triumphed against sin, death and darkness itself, and no matter how difficult our current situation and our world outlook these days may be, there will always be hope for us as long as we put our faith and trust in God.

May the Lord continue to bless us all and guide us in our journey, and may He empower us all with the courage and strength to carry out living our lives from now on with faith. May God be with us always, and protect us all from the dangers of the evil ones. Amen.

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Wednesday, 6 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day let us all spend some time to reflect on what we have just heard from the passages of the Sacred Scriptures, in which we are called to have that genuine and strong faith in God, to be passionate and dedicated in how we live our lives so that we may truly be examples and inspiration for each other in our way of living our faith. We are called to devote our time and attention to the Lord in our daily living as best as we can.

In our first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard about the work of the Apostles especially that of St. Paul and St. Barnabas in going to various places in the Eastern Mediterranean region, as they went to the various Jewish and Gentile communities to spread the Good News of God to all of them. The Lord gave them the strength, courage and wisdom to carry out His will and the mission entrusted to them, and the Apostles and other disciples prayed over all the missionaries before they embarked on their journey.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what we have heard in our Scripture passages today highlight how all those very dedicated and committed servants of God laboured for the sake of the Lord and His Church during the early days of the Church. Unlike today, at that time, most places that the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord visited were truly places where the Lord, the faith and His truth were still completely ignorant of the truth of God, full of pagan practices and in some cases even immorality.

It was indeed very difficult for the Apostles and all the missionaries to carry out their missions, as they had to contend with various obstacles and challenges throughout their journey. They had to risk a lot during their mission and their journey, just as the other Christians also often had to hide and persevere through many persecutions against them. Yet, all of them seemed to be passionate and committed regardless, and there does not seem to be any logical reasons for those many martyrs of the faith who chose to remain faithful even to the point of facing death.

And that is because they know that they belong to the Lord, and the Lord will always be by their side and will be faithful to the Covenant which He has made with all of them. God is always loving and committed to us, and we can indeed trust Him and put our lives in His hands. That was what those early Christians had in their minds and in their hearts whenever they were going through tribulations and difficult challenges. They trusted the Lord and followed Him wherever He guided them to.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, even till this very day, all these still hold true, as we are God’s people and He is our Lord and Shepherd. And the fact is that the works of the Apostles and the missionaries of the Lord are far from over. In fact, in our world today there remain an even greater need for the Lord’s truth to be brought to all the peoples of all the nations. Many people are still living in ignorance of God’s truth, and this apply even, sadly, to those within the Church and many of those who call themselves as Christians.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, at present, there are plenty of lukewarm attitude in how many among us Christians are living our lives and our faith. We treat the faith as nothing more important than a side activity, or even as a chore and formality, something that should not have been the case. But this is the sad reality and truth, knowing how so many among us treat the Lord and our Christian faith with such lukewarmness, apathy, ignorance and even disdain. It is sad that quite a few treat their faith as nothing more than a formality.

This is why, in these days we are living now, we have this same challenge facing the Church and all of us, to continue the works of the Apostles in being the bearers of the Good News and the Lord’s truth in our world today, even among our own Christian communities. We are all called to be the good and faithful witnesses of our faith to our fellow brothers and sisters, by living our lives with genuine commitment to our Christian faith and following what the Lord has commanded and taught us to do.

We have to be faithful ourselves if we want to convince others to be faithful. That is why we are called today to reflect on the faith of our many predecessors, all those Christians who had endured such difficult persecutions and challenges, and all those missionaries and bringers of the truth of the Gospel who had laboured hard for the sake of God and His Church in this world. Are we able to follow in their footsteps, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to commit ourselves and our lives for the Lord?

Let us all discern carefully then on what we all can do from now on to spread the Good News of God, His truth and His salvation to all the peoples. May the Lord be with us in our journey of faith and may He help us with our efforts, guide us in our path and help direct our efforts, that in everything we do, we will always bring glory to the Lord and bring ever more souls to salvation in God, through His Church. Amen.

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Tuesday, 5 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are reminded that even at the worst and most difficult moments of our lives, we must never lose hope and faith in the Lord for our hope and life lie in His hands alone. We must put our complete trust and faith in Him and follow Him. In our Scripture passages today we heard how the Lord was with His Church, and how He, as our Good Shepherd is always by our side and caring for us.

We heard in our first reading today from the Acts of Apostles how persecutions and oppressions happened to the Church and the faithful beginning with the persecution and martyrdom of St. Stephen, the first of the many martyrs of the Church, and many more then would suffer because of the actions taken by the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council, as well as through the actions of some of the zealous enemies of the Christian faith, especially that of Saul, the young, misguided Pharisee, who would later on be known as St. Paul the Apostle after his conversion.

But at that time, Saul was still a vigorous and even violent enemy of the early Christians, arresting many of the followers of Christ across Judea and Jerusalem, making many of them suffer persecution and prison, for his misguided agenda in trying to eradicate the Christian faith and stop the teachings and truth of Christ from spreading further. Many of them had to flee to the surrounding regions and countries to avoid the persecutions, but even during these difficult and challenging moments, the Apostles and various missionaries still ventured forth to bring the Good News to many people.

From the same passage in the Acts of the Apostles, we heard how the Apostles and servants of God enthusiastically went around many cities and towns throughout the Mediterranean region preaching the Good News and gaining more converts in those places. There were of course plenty of rejection and also plenty of sufferings and troubles during their missionary journey, but as with their troubles and challenges in Judea and Jerusalem, these did not stop them or discourage them from doing the mission entrusted to them.

Instead, as the Lord was with them and guided them along their journey, they became even more enthusiastic and willing to commit themselves to the works of the Lord. They believe in the Lord, their Master and their Good Shepherd, Who has promised as He Himself mentioned in our Gospel passage today, that He will lead them all, all those who believe in Him, into eternal life and glory with Him in heaven. And those who put their trust and faith in Him will not be lost, and will have sure anchor in the Lord.

That is why despite the challenges that the disciples and the early Christians had to face, it is even more encouraging for them that the Lord was by their side and with them even through their most difficult moments, having received the assurance that their Good Shepherd and Lord was with them, suffering with them and walking with them as they courageously went from place to place proclaiming God’s truth and salvation to all the peoples of all nations.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us are therefore today reminded that we are all also part of this one and same Church, with the same mission that has been revealed and entrusted to the Apostles and the disciples, that Great Commission, when the Lord Jesus commanded all of us to go forth to all the nations and gather all the people from every nations and make them all His disciples, and baptise them in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Through us, our Lord and Good Shepherd is gathering all of His scattered flock into one flock once again.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to realise that we all have a part to play and to contribute as members and parts of God’s one Church, and we have to follow the good examples set by our Good Shepherd, and subsequently, what His Apostles and disciples had done, as they themselves walked in the path set before them as shepherds entrusted with the care and guardianship of the people and flock of God. We are all also part of this journey of faith together, and we must take part in it wholeheartedly.

Are we able to dedicate ourselves and commit ourselves to the Lord as how our many holy predecessors had done? Let us do our best in whatever it is that God has called us to do, and contribute our efforts as best as we can from now on. May all of us by our actions and by our exemplary life and dedication to the Lord, our Good Shepherd be inspiration and guide to our fellow brethren that more and more souls may come to the Lord and be reconciled with Him.

May God bless us always, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to live faithfully and to give ourselves in the service of God. May the Lord guide us all, as He has promised us, to the land of eternal joy and true glory with Him, our loving Good Shepherd, Master and Creator. Amen.

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Monday, 4 May 2020 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us heard of how the Lord has called all of the peoples from various nations and places to follow Him, to walk in His path and to listen to Him, for He is the One true Shepherd and Lord of all, the Good Shepherd of all the flock and people of God. We who have been created by God are His people and we are all part of this same flock He has been gathering from the nations, called to be His people.

And we are all equal before God, equally loved and cherished by Him, for that is why He created each and every one of us, with equal opportunities to enjoy His wonderful love and grace, and with equal attention from His loving and tender care. This is precisely the message that He had told His Apostle St. Peter, the chief shepherd that He had appointed to be His Vicar and the leader of the whole of His universal flock, the Church, that everyone may come to know of the love of God and come to His loving embrace.

In today’s first reading, we heard about the testimony of St. Peter the Apostle to the other Apostles and disciples in Judea, in the light that some among the disciples wanted to impose strict Jewish laws and customs to all the faithful, while some even despised those who went to the Gentiles, spoke with them and ministered to them. And that included St. Peter himself who was attacked for his travel to Joppa, his works among the Gentiles and his visit to the house of Cornelius, a Roman and a Gentile in the eyes of the Jews.

At that time, the prevailing sentiment among the Jewish people especially in Judea, and even more so amongst the members of the Pharisees was that association and contacts with the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people were undesirable and to be avoided as far as possible. To them the Gentiles were pagans and unbelievers, filthy and corrupted by their sins, and because of this, they did not want to defile themselves by associating, meeting or going to the house of a Gentile.

And this was made even more complicated by the then recent history of the persecution of the Jewish faith and traditions by the Greeks under the Seleucid Greek kings, overcome only by years of stiff and stubborn resistance by the local Jewish rebels and fighters under the Maccabees. Then, later on the Romans came and took over power, and their taxation and persecution of the Jews made the sentiment against the Gentiles even worse as years passed by.

But the Lord showed St. Peter a vision, showing him all the food in the form of animals that had been considered as unclean under the old Jewish laws and customs. The Lord told St. Peter to eat of the food from the animals considered unclean, but St. Peter resisted and said that he should not eat of what the Law considered to be unclean, and the Lord chided him for not following and doing what the Lord had declared to be clean and good. As He repeated this divine vision three times, the Lord told St. Peter the truth and His intention, that He wants all of His people to be reconciled to Him, to find their way to Him and to be part of His Church.

This is in contrast to what those hardline Jews and the Pharisees among the earliest Christian converts upheld, in their view that only the Jewish customs, practices and ways of life can assure them of God’s salvation and grace. The Lord wanted the Apostles, His disciples and all of us to know that He, our Good Shepherd has called us all, His scattered flock and sheep all around the world, that we may be reunited with Him, and find our way to the salvation and new life through Him.

We are all truly blessed that our Lord, the Good Shepherd has revealed God’s most wonderful love to each and every one of us. We have been given a new lease of life by the Lord and we must appreciate whatever it is that we have been given. We are all reminded that indeed there is only one flock, and there is just one Shepherd. All the whole Church is this flock of the Lord, and all of us have been called by the Lord from all the nations that there will be no more divisions among us, Gentile or Jew, poor or rich, or by any other standards of life we often use to divide ourselves.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us are called to be good examples to one another, imitating the Good Shepherd, our Lord Himself. If our Good Shepherd has been so loving and caring towards us, then we should also show the same love towards our fellow brothers and sisters, as after all we are all part of this same flock of our Lord, and we have all been loved equally by God. Let us all love one another just as the Lord, our Good Shepherd has loved us.

And let us all focus our lives once again on the Lord and put Him at the centre of all of our lives and existence. May the Lord be with us always, and may He strengthen each and every one of us that we may be ever filled with love and conviction to serve God with all of our strength, now and always. Amen.