Wednesday

by

Wednesday, 21 October 2015 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 123 : 1-3, 4-6, 7-8

Had not the Lord been on our side – let Israel say – had not the Lord been on our side, when people rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive; such was their anger against us.

A bit more and the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, the raging waters would have swept us away. Blessed be the Lord, Who did not let us be devoured.

Like a bird our soul escaped from the snare of the fowler; the snare was broken and we were freed. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

by

Wednesday, 21 October 2015 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 6 : 12-18

Do not allow sin any control over your mortal bodies; do not submit yourselves to its evil inclinations, and do not give your members over to sin, as instruments to do evil. On the contrary, offer yourselves as persons returned from death to life, and let the members of your body be as holy instruments at the service of God.

Sin will not lord it over you again, for you are not under the Law, but under grace. I ask again : are we to sin because we are not under the Law, but under grace? Certainly not. If you have given yourselves up to someone as his slave, you are to obey the one who commands you, are you not? Now with sin you go to death, and by accepting faith you go the right way.

Let us give thanks to God for, after having sin as your master, you have been given to another, that is, to the doctrine of faith, to which you listen willingly. And being free from sin, you began to serve true righteousness.

by

Wednesday, 14 October 2015 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together the feast of a holy servant of God, His Vicar on earth, that is Pope St. Callistus I, martyr of the faith and Leader of the Universal Church. Pope St. Callistus I or Pope St. Callixtus I led the Church through difficult times and through challenging moments, when the Church and the faithful went through series of persecutions by the Roman Emperors.

Pope St. Callistus helped lead the flock of God’s people through those turbulent times, and he and many other leaders and elders of the Church helped to build up the foundation of the Church and stabilised it through the time of challenges and troubles. He helped to reunite those who have been wayward in their faith and abandoned their faith to return to the Church through atonement and repentance.

There were some of those in the Church at that time who favoured unconditional punishment and condemnation without mercy for all those who have erred and betrayed the Lord and their faith. And indeed they disagreed bitterly with Pope St. Callistus I, and the happenings at that time almost splintered the Church apart. However, by the grace of God and by his hard work, Pope St. Callistus I managed to keep the Church of God together amidst those turbulent times.

What he proposed was not an open toleration or total ignorance of the sins of those who have fallen on the road to the temptations of the devil, or a total rejection, humiliation and condemnation of those who have fallen aside. Instead, it is a path of mercy and forgiveness that was offered with the need for genuine and clear repentance on the part of those who have erred and sinned.

Thus, in the same way, Jesus also rebuked the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law for their refusal to change their ways, as they liked to judge others and condemn them for the faults, mistakes and sins they have committed, slandering and oppressing them, and using their position and influence to bring about suffering to all those whom they have put the burden on.

These people acted high and mighty, and they acted as if they themselves were pure and blameless from any wrongdoings or sins, but in fact, as the Lord Himself pointed out to them, that they were themselves subject to the wicked and wrong things that they had done, and they were blind to their own errors, which resulted in them leading others to error as well. This is what they had done, and the great disservice that they had brought upon God’s people.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this reminder as well as the examples of Pope St. Callistus I and other faithful servants of our Lord are reminders for all of us not to engage in similar behaviour and activity, namely being overly judgmental and condemning upon others based on what they have done, and instead let us all focus on the potential that all men has for change and redemption.

But this does not mean that we and the Church should go soft in dealing with all of those who have erred and sinned. There are many, even in our Church today, who thought that we should give unconditional allowance for sinners to return fully to the Church, giving them allowance, chance and incentives to return to the Church, but ignoring the fact that they have committed often grave sins before the Lord and His people.

Doing this means a great disservice to those sinners, who may then think that they have no need for repentance or the need to change their ways if they want to attain salvation. This will lead to the sinners continuing to live in sin and not strive to change themselves for the better. And truly, if they fall into damnation, the responsibility will be ours for the fate of those poor souls.

We do not peddle or give false mercy that requires no action from those who receive it. Rather, we offer the Lord’s most generous mercy while requiring all those who intend to receive it to embark on a path of total conversion and repentance as the prerequisite for the reception of God’s greatest and ever rich mercy. Without the action from the sinners to change their ways and repent, God’s mercy will not work on them.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all devote ourselves ever more to bring one another closer to the salvation in God, and let us all commit ourselves to call especially those trapped in the darkness of sin to repent, change their sinful ways and follow the Lord once more. May our loving and merciful God be with us all always, now and forever. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 14 October 2015 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Luke 11 : 42-46

At that time, Jesus said to the Pharisee, “A curse is on you, Pharisees; to the Temple you give a tenth of all, including mint and rue and the other herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. These ought to be practiced, without neglecting those.”

“A curse is on you, Pharisees, for you love the best seats in the synagogues and to be greeted in the marketplace. A curse is on you, for you are like tombstones of the dead which can hardly be seen; people do not notice them, and make themselves unclean by stepping on them.”

Then a teacher of the Law spoke up and said, “Master, when You speak like this, You insult us, too.” And Jesus answered, “A curse is on you also, teachers of the Law. For you prepare unbearable burdens and load them on the people, while you yourselves do not move a finger to help them.”

by

Wednesday, 14 October 2015 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Psalm 61 : 2-3, 6-7, 9

My soul finds rest in God alone; from Him comes my salvation. He alone is my Rock and Salvation; with Him as my Stronghold, I shall not be overcome.

Find rest in God alone, o my soul; from Him comes my hope. He alone is my Rock and my Salvation; with Him as my Stronghold, I shall not be overcome.

Trust in Him at all times, my people; pour out your hearts before Him; God is our refuge.

by

Wednesday, 14 October 2015 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Romans 2 : 1-11

Therefore, you have no excuse, whoever you are, if you are able to judge others. For in judging your neighbour, you condemn yourself, for you practice what you are judging. We know that the condemnation of God will justly reach those who commit these things, and do you think that by condemning others you will escape from the judgment of God, you who are doing the same?

This would be taking advantage of God and His infinite goodness, patience and understanding, and not to realise that His goodness is in order to lead you to conversion. If your heart becomes hard and you refuse to change, then you are storing for yourself a great punishment on the day of judgment, when God will appear as Just Judge.

He will give each one his due, according to his actions. He will give everlasting life to those who seek glory, honour and immortality and persevere in doing good. But anger and vengeance will be the lot of those who do not serve truth but injustice.

There will be suffering and anguish for everyone committing evil, first the Jew, then the Greek. But God will give glory, honour and peace to whoever does good, first the Jew then the Greek, because one is not different from the other before God.

by

Wednesday, 7 October 2015 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of our Lady of the Rosary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a great feast of the Church, in the memory of the Blessed Mother of our Lord, Mary, one of whose title is the Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, or also known as our Lady of Victory, the beginning of this feast celebrated on every seventh day of the month of October, as the commemoration of the great triumph and victory of the forces of the faithful at the Battle of Lepanto against the infidel Ottoman Turks.

The feast of our Lady of Victory, which would later become the feast of our Lady of the Rosary, was instituted by Pope St. Pius V, who led the forces of Christendom and all the faithful in the great struggle against the heathen and pagan forces of the Ottoman Empire, which at the time was a huge menace to all the faithful, being at its peak, and marching deep into the Christian heartlands.

At the time, the forces of the faithful desperately needed some hope and victory amidst constant retreat and defeats against the mighty forces of the enemy, and at that time, the forces of the infidels were threatening to overrun the entire lands of the faithful, and the threat of persecution and destruction was very real, and many of the faithful feared for their lives.

Led by Pope St. Pius V, and several other prominent civil and military leaders of Christendom, the Church gathered together a force readying itself to defend the faithful ones of God, and they met the forces of the infidels at Lepanto, on the seventh day of October of the year 1571, about four and a half centuries ago. The leaders of Christendom asked for the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary before the battle.

And during the great battle, the forces of the enemy were frightened and scared by what they described as a great vision in the clouds of innumerable saints and angels, led by the Blessed Virgin Mary at the side of Christ who is leading His forces against the forces of those who refused to believe in the One, True God. And the enemy forces were scattered, and their ships were sunk, ending the battle in a great and mighty victory for Christendom.

Thus, in thanksgiving, Pope St. Pius V devoted and dedicated the day of the battle as an annual feast in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as the patron of the great triumph against the forces of evil. It was the intercession of Mary that has allowed the Lord to be moved to defend His faithful ones, as the prayers of the faithful were gathered by Mary, who brought them to the presence of her Son in heaven, being the closest to the Throne of God.

And today has then been associated with our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, because of the significance of the rosary in the battle that is raging in us, around us and at all times for the sake of our souls. The rosary is a great spiritual weapon that is a great tool for us, our sword and shield against the forces of Satan, all the evil and wickedness arrayed against us.

Why is this so? This is because the rosary itself originated with the vision of our Blessed Mother to St. Dominic de Guzman, many centuries ago, who appeared to him and asked him to spread and propagate the devotion of the rosary, as a means for the faithful to strengthen their spiritual life and defend themselves against the assaults of the devil.

And it was the same Pope St. Pius V who established with formality the devotion of the rosary, and approved it as a method of spiritual prayer to ask for the intercession of the Blessed Mother Mary, ever Virgin, to strengthen our defence against the assaults of the evil one. The rosary is named after the rosarium, a crown of roses, apparently what the Blessed Virgin Mary showed to St. Dominic de Guzman who first promoted the use of the rosary.

In each of the flowers or the beads of the rosary, each of these consist of a prayer that is a great weapon against the devil, namely the Ave Maria, or the Hail Mary, signifying the woman and the glory and the honour God gave her, because of the role she played in the salvation of all mankind, and how Satan had been defeated in totality through what she had done, in accepting the role she was to play in our salvation, by bearing the Saviour of the world in herself.

And every time we pray the rosary, Satan and his fellow fallen angels will be reminded of the failure that they had encountered, in failing to corrupt this holy woman whose immaculate conception and freedom from sin, as well as her immaculate and impeccable actions, completely and totally devoted to the Lord her God, is a blinding light that burns the devils and tears them apart.

If we pray the rosary, let us all pray not for the sake of praying or saying the prayers, as praying the rosary in just saying the words, is meaningless and without benefits for us or our salvation. Instead, when we pray the rosary, all of us ought to open ourselves and look deep inside our hearts, and bare everything open to the Blessed Virgin Mary, asking her to help us by interceding for us poor sinners, who need help in order to resist the temptations and assaults by the evil one.

Let us pray the rosary with full devotion and intention of heart, that just as the faithful at the Battle of Lepanto cried out to the Lord through His blessed Mother, we too cry out with one voice, asking for help and deliverance from the forces of evil and darkness that engulfed us and oppressed us. God will surely hear us if we ask Him with the help of Mary, His mother. After all, if we remember the wedding at Cana, where Jesus performed His very first miracle, He did listen to Mary even though He said that His time was not up yet.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore dutifully devote ourselves in the rosary, to solidify our prayer and spiritual life, and then enhance it with loving actions and deeds, helping others who are in need around us, so that our hearts, minds, bodies and soul may all be attuned strongly to the Lord, and we may be defended against the assaults of Satan and his allies. May God bless us all always, and may His blessed Mother, our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, our Lady of Victory always intercede and pray for us sinners. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 7 October 2015 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of our Lady of the Rosary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 26-38

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth. He was sent to a young virgin, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the family of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

The angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Mary was troubled at these words, wondering what this greeting could mean. But the angel said, “Do not fear, Mary, for God has looked kindly on you. You shall conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call Him Jesus.”

“He will be great, and shall rightly be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the kingdom of David, His ancestor; He will rule over the people of Jacob forever, and His reign shall have no end.”

Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the Holy Child to be born of you shall be called Son of God. Even your relative Elizabeth is expecting a son in her old age, although she was unable to have a child; and she is now in her sixth month. With God nothing is impossible.”

Then Mary said, “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as you have said.” And the angel left her.

by

Wednesday, 7 October 2015 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of our Lady of the Rosary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

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

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

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

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

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

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

by

Wednesday, 7 October 2015 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of our Lady of the Rosary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 1 : 12-14

Then the disciples of Jesus returned to Jerusalem from the Mount called Olives, which is a fifteen minute walk away. On entering the city they went to the room upstairs where they were staying.

Present there were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James, son of Alpheus; Simon the Zealot and Judas son of James. All of these together gave themselves to constant prayer. With them were some women and also Mary, the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.