Universal Church

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Monday, 22 September 2025 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Ezra 1 : 1-6

In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, YHVH willed to fulfil the word He had said through the prophet Jeremiah. So He moved the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, to issue the following command and send it out in writing to be read aloud everywhere in his kingdom : “Thus speaks Cyrus, king of Persia : YHVH, the God of heavens, Who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has ordered me to build Him a Temple in Jerusalem, in the land of Judah.”

“To everyone belonging to His people, may his God be with him! Let them go up to Jerusalem with the help of their God and, there, build the House of YHVH, the God of Israel; the God Who is in Jerusalem. In every place where the rest of the people of YHVH live, let the people of those places help them for their journey with silver, gold and all kinds of goods and livestock. Let them also give them voluntary offerings for the House of YHVH which is in Jerusalem.”

Then they rose up – the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, the priests and the Levites, and all those whose spirit God had stirred up – and they decided to go and build the House of YHVH. And all their neighbours gave them all kinds of help : gold, silver, livestock and precious objects in great quantity, besides every kind of voluntary offering.

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Sunday, 21 September 2025 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together to praise the Lord, all of us are reminded by the words from the Sacred Scriptures we have heard that we must seek not the desires and ambitions of the world, the temptations of worldly goods, matter, money and all the things which can distract us from our path in life towards God, in the need for us to obey the Lord and His teachings. Each and every one of us should always remind one another that our lives should always be anchored in our faith in Christ our Lord, doing our best to live in a righteous manner according to the path that God has shown us. It is by doing this faithfully even in the smallest things that we do, that we become truly worthy as those whom the Lord had called and chosen.

In our first reading this Sunday, taken from the Book of the prophet Amos, we heard of the words of the Lord which He delivered through Amos to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel although he originated from the southern kingdom of Judah. The Lord sent words of rebuke and warning against all those wicked people who had not been truly faithful to Him, and worse still, as they even exploited the weak and the needy for their own benefits and profits, as mentioned in how they tampered with the scales and cheated the honest people who had come to them seeking for their services. And for all these dishonesty, wickedness and all the other evils that they had done, the Lord would punish them all and crush them all, as they rightfully deserved.

God wants all of His people to follow His path, everything that He has taught and shown them all. He does not want them to veer off into paths of evil and wickedness, through which they could end up in their downfall. The Lord therefore sent them many reminders and helpers to assist them, showing them the path to follow so that they may end up in the right path. These helpers and messengers were none other than the prophets and messengers of God, all sharing the same message which were meant for the people, ever reminding and calling on them to obey the Lord their God, and to follow His Law and commandments. And yet, the people still rebelled against the Lord and refused to obey or listen to the prophets, and in fact even persecuting and murdering those servants of God.

And many of these came about especially because of pride that afflicted many among them. Pride is truly indeed a great obstacle in our path as Christians, in being truly faithful to God amidst all the temptations of the world. And for the Israelites, their pride in thinking that their way of life could not be wrong or mistaken, or that they did not do anything wrong, was one of the main reasons why they persisted in their rebellion and disobedience against God. Then, their desires and attachments for worldly glory, pleasures and ambitions, all of these have also led them further astray as they sought for all the things and pleasures in the world which then misled and distracted them from the path towards the Lord their God, and closed their hearts and minds against the words of the prophets and messengers sent to remind them.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to his protege, St. Timothy, in which the Apostle spoke of the faith that all the Christian believers ought to have in their one Lord and Master, as St. Paul reminded to St. Timothy that there is indeed only one Lord and Mediator of all things, the Mediator of the New Covenant between God and His people, in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who had been crucified, suffered and died for all of our sakes. And St. Paul made it clear that it is this One Mediator and Lord that he, St. Timothy and all the other missionaries had been working hard to proclaim and speak about in many places and even in distant lands, and therefore he encouraged them all to continue to work hard in praying and asking for God to help and guide His people in all things.

Finally, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the parable which the Lord Jesus used to teach the disciples about the importance of putting their faith and trust in Him, and not to be easily tempted and distracted by worldly ambitions and desires, echoing what we have heard from the earlier Scripture readings as well. In that parable of the dishonest steward, we heard the story of a steward who had been accused of dishonesty and misdeeds in his work, and was therefore to be fired from his position, and we heard then how the dishonest steward then used his ideas and astuteness to try to secure for himself a living by modifying the contracts and debts of those who have owed money or things to his own master.

In doing that, the dishonest steward was trying to gain favour with those who had been indebted to his master, with the hope that when he was out of his job, there would be those who would take care of him. But if we look deeper, we can see how all these things ultimately came about and happened because of the steward’s own actions, his own greed, ambitions and desires that led him to be dishonest in his actions, which he then doubled down during the time when he was trying to secure a living for himself. While the master did praise the steward’s astuteness, this should not be considered as an endorsement or approval of what the steward had done. Rather, what the master highlighted and wanted us all to know is that, it is necessary for us to act in the way that the steward had done, in preparing for eventuality to come.

And for us all this eventuality is about the coming of the time when we all have to reckon and account for our lives before the Lord at the end and time of judgment. And since we know that this is coming up for all of us, then what is our choice of actions in our lives? Are we going to follow the way of the dishonest steward in indulging ourselves in worldliness or are we going to do what the Lord Himself has told us all to do? The choice is ours to make, and we should live our lives to the best of our abilities such that in everything that we say and do, we will always do what is right and just according to what the Lord Himself has shown and taught us, and this is what the Lord wants us all to do in our lives so that we may make best use of everything that He has provided to us to serve and glorify Him, at all times.

May the Lord continue to bless each and every one of us in our good works and endeavours, and help us all such that we can resist the temptations of worldly glory, pleasures and ambitions, and seek instead to follow the path that the Lord has shown us. Let us all be exemplary and be good role models in how we live our lives each day, in obeying God and His Law and commandments, and in showing genuine love and care to everyone around us, particularly to those whom we love and care for, while not neglecting those around us who need our help and generosity as well. May God be with us always in all things, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 21 September 2025 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 16 : 1-13

At that time, Jesus told His disciples, “There was a rich man, whose steward was reported to him because of fraudulent service. He summoned the steward and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? I want you to render an account of your service, for it is about to be terminated.'”

“The steward thought to himself, ‘What am I to do now? My master will surely dismiss me. I am not strong enough to do hard work, and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I will do : I must make sure that when I am dismissed, there will be people will welcome me into their homes.'”

“So he called his master’s debtors, one by one. He asked the first debtor, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ The reply was, ‘A hundred jars of oil.’ The steward said, ‘Here is your bill. Sit down quickly and write fifty.’ To the second debtor he put the same question, ‘How much do you owe?’ The answer was, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ Then the steward said, ‘Take your bill and write eighty.'”

“The master commended the dishonest steward for his astuteness : for the people of this world are more astute, in dealing with their own kind, than are the people of light. And so I tell you : use filthy money to make friends for yourselves, so that, when it fails, these people may welcome you into the eternal homes. Whoever can be trusted in little things can also be trusted in great ones; whoever is dishonest in slight matters will also be dishonest in greater ones.”

“So if you have been dishonest in handling filthy money, who would entrust you with true wealth? And if you have been dishonest with things that are not really yours, who will give you that wealth which is truly your own? No servant can serve two masters. Either he does not like the one and is fond of the other, or he regards one highly and the other with contempt. You cannot give yourself both to God and to Money.”

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Sunday, 21 September 2025 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Timothy 2 : 1-8

First of all, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving be made for everyone, for rulers of states, and all in authority, that we may enjoy a quiet and peaceful life, in godliness and respect. This is good and pleases God. For He wants all to be saved, and come to the knowledge of truth.

As there is one God, there is one Mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, Himself human, Who gave His life for the redemption of all. This is the testimony, given in its proper time, and of this, God has made me Apostle and herald. I am not lying, I am telling the truth : He made me teacher of the nations regarding faith and truth.

I want men, in every place, to lift pure hands, in prayer, to heaven, without anger and dissension.

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Sunday, 21 September 2025 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 112 : 1-2, 4-6, 7-8

Alleluia! Praise, o servants of YHVH, praise the Name of YHVH! Blessed be the Name of YHVH now and forever!

YHVH is exalted over the nations; His glory above the heavens. Who is like YHVH our God, Who sits enthroned on high, but also bends down to see on earth as in heaven?

He lifts up the poor from the dust and the needy from the ash heap. He makes them sit with princes, with rulers of His people.

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Sunday, 21 September 2025 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Amos 8 : 4-7

Hear this, you, who trample on the needy, to do away with the weak of the land. You who say, “When will the new moon or the Sabbath feast be over that we may open the store and sell our grain? Let us lower the measure and raise the price; let us cheat and tamper with the scaled, and even sell the refuse with the whole grain. We will buy up the poor for money and the needy for a pair of sandals.”

YHVH, the Pride of Jacob, has sworn by Himself, “I shall never forget their deeds.”

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Saturday, 20 September 2025 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Martyr, St. Paul Chong Ha-sang, Martyr, St. Laurent Imbert, Bishop and Martyr, St. Jacques Chastan, Priest and Martyr, 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 all reminded that each and every one of us have been given and entrusted with many great and wonderful things by God Himself, all the talents, abilities, opportunities and the many other things which He has provided for us so that we may truly be fruitful and active in making good use of them for the benefit of all the people of God and all those whom we encounter in our paths and journeys as Christians, as the disciples and followers of the Lord. Each and every one of us should always do our best such that our every actions, words and deeds may inspire many more people to come to know the Lord, His love and truth.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to his protege and fellow missionary, St. Timothy, we heard of the Apostle reminding St. Timothy and all fellow Christians to always remember that they were all the servants and followers of Christ, the Lord and Saviour, God Himself Who has manifested His love and works through His Son, Whom He sent into our world in order to bring all of us, His beloved people into salvation and eternal life through Him. And because of this, each and every one of those who have professed their faith as Christians ought to continue to focus our lives on God and His teachings, to embody our faith in our everyday actions, in our every words and deeds, in everything that we say and do, at all times.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the famous parable that the Lord Jesus taught to His disciples, which I am sure we are all well aware of, that is the parable of the sower. In this parable of the sower, we heard of what happened to the different seeds that fell in different places, and how among all those seeds, only those that fell on rich and fertile soil managed to grow well and bear fruits, while all the other seeds, those that fell by the roadside, those that fell on the rocks and those that grew amongst the brambles and weeds, all those failed to grow. The Lord Himself had explained His parable and its meaning clearly to the disciples, highlighting how God has given to each and every one of us the gifts and opportunities, talents and abilities much like those seeds that were mentioned in the parable.

However, they had to be nurtured and cultivated, meaning that we should do our best to give the best conditions possible in allowing this faith, all the gifts and things that God had provided to us. And how do we exactly do that, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is by us spending more quality time with the Lord, doing our best to walk ever more faithfully in the Lord’s Presence at all times, in even the most ordinary things that we do. We must not underestimate the power of prayer and faith in our lives, and we should always strive to lead a life that is attuned to God’s will, doing our part such that we may grow ever closer to God and continue to glorify Him by our exemplary living, at all times. We should be good inspirations and role models for others around us, and that is one way how our faith can lead to so many more others finding their way to the Lord, and hence, bearing rich fruits for the Lord.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Korean Martyrs, or the Holy Martyrs of Korea, which are composed of many local Korean Christians and converts, both among the clergy and the laity alike, as well as the many missionaries who had come from distant lands, serving the Lord and His people, and all of whom endured great challenges, trials and sufferings amidst their ministry and living of their Christian faith. Today we remember all of these most courageous, faithful and loving people of God, who have borne the pains and struggles of being God’s faithful and beloved children and disciples, suffering prison, pains and sufferings, humiliations and hardships, and many of them even died as martyrs, choosing to die in faith rather than to give up their faith in God or to abandon Him and His Church.

At that time, the Korean state and government were very suspicious and hostile against the Christians and the missionaries who came to Korea to evangelise and proclaim the Lord and His Good News. They viewed the Christian faith and the missionaries as threat to their way of life and the authority of the state, as opposed to the strict Confucian nature of the society and the worldview of the time prevailing in Korea. And therefore, the state persecuted the Christians, both the foreign missionaries and also the local converts, oppressing and attacking them, forcing them to choose between their faith and suffering, or to obey the commands and demands of the state and abandoning their newfound faith and trust in the Lord.

St. Andrew Kim Taegon was particularly renowned among the saints and martyrs commemorated today as he was the first Korean Catholic priest, and he had a rough early life because his family, who had converted to the Christian faith were persecuted and he had his family members martyred for being followers of Christ. At a young age of fifteen, St. Andrew Kim Taegon chose to be baptised and then went to Macau to study as a seminarian and eventually was ordained as a priest in Shanghai in China. He later on returned to Korea to preach the Christian faith and Good News, evangelising to many of the people in his homeland. Eventually, he was persecuted with many other Christians, both missionaries, clergy and laity alike during intense persecutions against them, but he and the other faithful martyrs remained firmly faithful to the very end.

There was also the story of the faith of St. Laurent Imbert, the first Vicar Apostolic of Korea, the missionary which the Pope appointed to be the representative of the Church in Korea, laying down the important groundwork for the growth of Christianity in that area. St. Laurent Imbert dedicated himself to minister to the faithful people of God, the flock entrusted to his care by the Lord, despite the intensifying persecutions against him and many other missionaries. When he and the other missionaries had to go into hiding during those persecutions, St. Laurent Imbert voluntarily surrendered himself to the authorities, and encouraged two other priests to do the same as he hoped that by doing so, he might spare many other Christians, his own flock, from suffering more for being followers of Christ. Before he was martyred, he was remembered for his great quote from the Gospel, ‘The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep.’, showing the action that he and the Lord Himself had done in ensuring our salvation and liberation from sin and destruction.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be inspired by the faith and examples shown to us by the Holy Martyrs of Korea, those whose lives and dedication to God have been most exemplary and strong, and who have inspired us all to continue to live our lives with genuine and strong faith in the Lord as we should have always done. Each and every one of us as Christians have been called to commit ourselves thoroughly and wholeheartedly to the cause of the Lord, to be truly loving and generous with our compassion and mercy to one another, and to trust in the Lord’s providence and care, and in everything which He has reassured and promised us, the promise of everlasting life and true happiness, of glory everlasting with Him.

May the Lord our God continue to guide us all and strengthen us in faith as He has done to all those faithful servants, those Holy Martyrs in Korea who had dedicated their lives to Him and those who have done their best to remain faithful to Him despite the persecutions against them. May all of us continue to walk ever more faithfully and courageously in God’s Holy Presence and lead others to come ever closer to Him as well by our good examples and inspirations in life. Let us all be like the seeds that fell on the rich soil and bear wonderful fruits of our faith, that we may be found truly worthy by God. Amen.

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Saturday, 20 September 2025 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Martyr, St. Paul Chong Ha-sang, Martyr, St. Laurent Imbert, Bishop and Martyr, St. Jacques Chastan, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Luke 8 : 4-15

At that time, as a great crowd gathered, and people came to Jesus from every town, He began teaching them with a story : “The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the seed fell along the way, was trodden on, and the birds of the sky ate it up.”

“Some seed fell on rocky ground; and no sooner had it come up than it withered, because it had no water. Some seed fell among thorns; the thorns grew up with the seed and choked it. But some seed fell on good soil and grew, producing fruit, a hundred times as much!” And Jesus cried out, “Listen then, if you have ears to hear!”

The disciples asked Him, “What does this story mean?” And Jesus answered, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to others it is given in the form of stories, or parables, so that, seeing, they may not perceive; and hearing, they may not understand.”

“Now, this is the point of the parable : The seed is the word of God. Those along the wayside are people who hear it; but immediately, the devil comes and takes the word from their minds, for he does not want them to believe and be saved. Those on the rocky ground are people who receive the word with joy; but they have no root; they believe for a while, and give way in time of trial.”

“Among the thorns are people who hear the word, but, as they go their way, they are choked by worries, riches, and the pleasures of life; they bring no fruit to maturity. The good soil, instead, are people who receive the word, and keep it, in a gentle and generous mind, and, persevering patiently, they bear fruit.”

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Saturday, 20 September 2025 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Martyr, St. Paul Chong Ha-sang, Martyr, St. Laurent Imbert, Bishop and Martyr, St. Jacques Chastan, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 99 : 2, 3, 4, 5

Serve YHVH with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.

Know that YHVH is God; He created us, and we are His people, the sheep of His fold.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving, His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His Name.

For YHVH is good; His love lasts forever; and His faithfulness, through all generations.

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Saturday, 20 September 2025 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Martyr, St. Paul Chong Ha-sang, Martyr, St. Laurent Imbert, Bishop and Martyr, St. Jacques Chastan, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

1 Timothy 6 : 13-16

Now, in the presence of God, Who gives life to all things, and of Jesus Christ, Who expressed before Pontius Pilate the authentic expression of faith : preserve the revealed message to all. Keep yourself pure and blameless, until the glorious coming of Christ Jesus, our Lord, Who God will bring about at the proper time : He, the Magnificent Sovereign, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

To Him, alone, immortal, Who lives in unapproachable light, and Whom no one has ever seen or can see, to Him, be honour and power, forever and ever. Amen!