Wednesday

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Wednesday, 4 December 2024 : 1st Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Isaiah 25 : 6-10a

On this mountain YHVH Sabaoth will prepare for all peoples a feast of rich food and choice wines, meat full of marrow, fine wine strained. On this mountain He will destroy the pall cast over all peoples, this very shroud spread over all nations, and death will be no more. The Lord YHVH will wipe away the tears from all cheeks and eyes; He will take away the humiliation of His people all over the world : for YHVH has spoken.

On that day you will say : This is our God. We have waited for Him to save us, let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation. For on this mountain the hand of YHVH rests.

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Wednesday, 27 November 2024 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Scriptures today, we are all reminded again that our path as Christians, as those who follow the Lord and believe in His teachings and words will not be an easy one. There will definitely be plenty of challenges and obstacles in our path and journey, and the way forward may be very arduous for us, but we must not easily give up the struggle and perseverance regardless of the various oppositions and trials in our path. We must always remain firm in our faith and commitment to God, and we must never lose sight of the true happiness and joy that we shall enjoy forever with Him, as long as we remain true to Him regardless of the difficulties that we have encountered.

In our first reading today, we heard from the continuation from the Book of Revelations of St. John as we had in the earlier days, in which the Apostle related to us what he had witnessed in his vision of the end of time, with the seven great Angels of God bringing forth the seven bowls of plagues from God to the world, at the last moments before the Final and Last Judgment. In that vision, St. John saw the Angels of God bringing forth God’s punishment upon all the sinners and all those who have remained in the world and chose to side with the evil one, refusing to listen to His truth and repent from their sins. This is what the Lord has justly given to all those who have constantly rejected and refused His love and kindness, His compassion and mercy.

This does not mean that God desires any one of us to be destroyed and condemned to Hell. On the contrary, He wants all of us, every single one of us, children of mankind, His most beloved and the pinnacle of all of His creation, to share in His eternal joy and love, and to be with Him forevermore. He does not wish for any one of us to be lost to Him. Hence, He has given us so many means for us to reach out to Him and to find our way to His salvation and grace. But if by our own volition and conscious decision and choice we have made, in denying God and refusing His generous offer of love and mercy, then we have been condemned by our own sins and by our own stubbornness and desires, and this is what those people will suffer in the end times.

We are being reminded all these so that we can remain strong and vigilant in our faith and in our lives so that we do not end up falling into the slippery slope of sin. It does not mean that all of us who have been baptised as Christians can never fall again into sin. The fact is that this makes the evil one and all of his forces to be even more hardworking in trying to bring us down and to drag us into the path towards our downfall. We are all saved by our faith in God, but if that faith is not made alive and vibrant through our actions, words and deeds, then that faith is as good as empty, meaningless and dead. And such a faith will not avail us on the Day of Judgment and reckoning, when we will have to account for our lives.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the words from the Lord Jesus to His disciples in which He foretold before them everything that they would have to endure as His disciples and followers, all the persecutions, hardships and obstacles that they would have to face in the midst of their ministry and works. This is a reality that all of us as Christians must realise, that as long as we remain faithful to the Lord and His ways, from the very beginning of the Church to the present day and even in the future, there will always be oppositions that we may face in various ways from the world, which is opposed to the path and the way of the Lord.

That is the reality of becoming a Christian, brothers and sisters in Christ. Having believed in the Lord, we are all called to be prepared to face the same struggles and challenges that He Himself had faced, and all these are caused by the darkness and evils present in this world which refuse to obey the way and truth of God, and all those that present to us the divergent ways that are contrary to the Lord’s teachings and salvation. This is why we must not be easily swayed and fooled, to think that having become Christians and believers in the Lord, then our lives will be all good and smooth, blessed and without problems. Indeed, that will be our ultimate fate in the world that is to come, but at present, in our world still marred by sin and corruption of evil, we may still have to suffer persecutions and challenges.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now what matters is what we are going to do about our own lives in this world. Are we going to commit ourselves anew to the Lord, to His path and to everything that He has entrusted to us? Or are we continue to be ignorant of our calling and mission in life? Or worse still, are we still going to allow the temptations of the world and sin to lead us astray and to bring us to our downfall? If we are not careful we may end up being dragged by the sins we commit and by our disobedience, and hence, risk falling ever deeper into the path towards damnation. That is why we should always keep in mind to follow the Lord ever more faithfully in each and every moments of our lives, doing whatever we can to serve Him at all times.

May the Lord, our ever patient, loving and compassionate God continue to strengthen us in faith so that we may ever draw strength and courage from Him as we endure various challenges and difficulties in life, so that we do not easily falter in our commitment to Him, and that we will not lose sight on the focus of our lives, that is God and Him alone. May the Lord bless us and guide us in our journey, in all the efforts and works that we make, fo the greater glory of His Holy Name, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Wednesday, 27 November 2024 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 21 : 12-19

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Before all these things happen, people will lay their hands on you and persecute you; you will be delivered to the synagogues and put in prison, and for My sake you will be brought before kings and governors. This will be your opportunity to bear witness.”

“So keep this in mind : do not worry in advance about what to say, for I will give you words and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death.”

“But even though, because of My Name, you will be hated by everyone, not a hair of your head will perish. By your patient endurance you will save your souls.”

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Wednesday, 27 November 2024 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 97 : 1, 2-3ab, 7-8, 9

Sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done wonders; His right hand, His holy arm, has won victory for Him.

The Lord has shown His salvation, revealing His justice to the nations. He has not forgotten His love nor His faithfulness to Israel.

Let the sea resound and everything in it, the world and all its peoples. Let rivers clap their hands, hills and mountains sing with joy.

Before the Lord, for He comes to rule the earth. He will judge the world with justice and the peoples with fairness.

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Wednesday, 27 November 2024 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Revelations 15 : 1-4

Then I saw another great and marvellous sign in the heavens : seven Angels brought seven plagues which are the last, for with these the wrath of God will end. There was a sea of crystal mingled with fire, and the conquerors of the beast, of its name and the mark of its name stood by it.

They had been given the celestial harps and they sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb : Great and marvellous are Your works, o Lord, God and Master of the universe. Justice and truth guide Your steps, o King of the nations.

Lord, who will not give honour and glory to Your Name? For You alone are holy. All the nations will come and bow before You, for they have now seen Your judgments.

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Wednesday, 20 November 2024 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the responsibilities that we have as Christians, that is as all those whom God had called and chosen to be His own people, so that we all should live worthily in the presence of God, being inspiration and role models for each other in how we live our lives well, committed and dedicated to glorifying the Lord by our every actions throughout our daily living. We must always make good use of the many blessings, opportunities and all the other things which God has presented to us in all of our lives, so that by our contributions and works, we may indeed be living true and genuine Christian lives, in accordance with God has commanded us all to do.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words from the Book of Revelations of St. John the Apostle in which he highlighted the great vision of Heaven and God in all of His glory upon His Throne, which showed the revelation of the One Whom we truly believe in and have been worshipping. God had indeed made Himself visible and approachable to us through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word of God, but at the same time, He is still the Almighty, Omnipotent and Omniscient God, Master and Lord over all the whole Universe, over all of Creation. That is why St. John elaborated on all the glorious things he had witnessed of the Lord, of the greatness and glory that is unparalleled and full of perfection, and the glory of the Angels, the Seraphim and the Cherubim surrounding the Throne of God, which reflects God’s far greater glory and might in them.

Through what we have heard in that passage from the Book of Revelations of St. John the Apostle we are all reminded that God Who is our Lord and Master is truly beyond our comprehension and understanding, and He is Almighty and perfect, and has no need for us, and yet, He chose to share the overflowing Love that comes forth from His loving Heart with us all, creating all of us to share in His love and joy, and to exist with Him in His Holy Presence forevermore. This glorious existence and truth has been revealed and presented to us by St. John who also wanted each and every one of us to keep in mind the manner how we all live our lives each day. All of us must always strive to be worthy of the Lord in everything that we say and do so that everyone may know Him through us and our actions.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke in which the Lord Jesus told His disciples and the people listening to Him using a parable that we all ought to know well, that is the parable of the silver pounds or the silver talents. In this parable, the Lord wants to remind us all to be aware of our calling, mission and obligations as Christians, as His followers and those who have been entrusted with various and diverse gifts, blessings, talents, opportunities and other things by which we have been empowered and strengthened, and given the chance to make good use of them all for the benefit of all and everyone around us. All of us have been entrusted like those in the parable with the responsibilities, the ‘silver pounds’ which our Lord and Master has given us all, in its varying amounts and types.

As we heard from that parable, those servants who have made good use of the silver pounds they were entrusted with and gained from that investment and efforts were rewarded by the Master in the end, who entrusted them with authority and rule over cities under his power. Meanwhile, the servant who fearfully hid his silver pound, ignored his responsibilities and did nothing with it was punished for his lack of obedience and refusal to do as he had been told to. This is therefore a clear parallel and comparison with us all, in how we ought to make good use of the many blessings, gifts, talents and opportunities that God has granted to us. We should not keep them idle, ignoring the many things that we can do for the benefit of all those whom we encounter in life.

If we ignore these opportunities and do nothing in order to help all those around us whom we can help and empower through our own efforts, our care and love, then we shall have to account for it before God. For sin is not just about doing what is wrong and against the Law of God, but also includes the sin of omission, that is not doing and ignoring what we can perfectly do in our daily lives and activities, through the many opportunities and things that God had provided for us. Each and every one of us are the ones whom God had entrusted with the care of this world, the place that He has prepared for all of us, and we are also entrusted with the care of our fellow brothers and sisters, all fellow children of God, in our various capacities, be it as a parent, a child, a family member, a relative, a friend, or even as a stranger, offering love and kindness in all things.

Now, are we willing and able then to commit ourselves to a life that is filled with true grace and loving actions towards one another? Are we willing to put in the effort to invest in whatever it is that God had given us, just like those good and hardworking servants in the parable? Let us all remember that God, as St. John the Apostle showed part of His glory to us, has kindly given us all these blessings and good things, be it small or significant in amount so that we can make good use of them for everyone’s benefit. Yet, many of us had chosen to selfishly keep them to ourselves, gathering things that we desire for our own wants and ambitions. This is what we are warned against doing, and we should heed God’s reminders for us so that we do not wait until it is too late before we do something about it.

Let us all therefore continue to do our best to follow the Lord faithfully and worthily through our caring and loving actions towards our fellow brothers and sisters around us. Let us all do our part in making this world a better place, starting from ourselves and our communities, in how we act towards those whom we encounter in our daily activities and lives, and in our society surrounding us. May our actions, words and deeds continue to glorify the Lord and proclaim His truth and Good News, and bring the love of God to more and more people, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 20 November 2024 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 19 : 11-28

At that time, Jesus was then near Jerusalem, and the people with Him thought that God’s reign was about to appear. So as they were listening to Him, Jesus went on to tell them a parable. He said, “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to assume regal authority, after which he planned to return home.”

“Before he left, he summoned ten od his servants and gave them ten pounds of silver. He said, ‘Put this money to work until I get back.’ But his compatriots, who disliked him, sent a delegation after him with this message, ‘We do not want this man to be our king.'”

“He returned, however, appointed as king. At once he sent for the servants, to whom he had given the money, to find out what profit each had made. The first came in, and reported, ‘Sir, your pound of silver has earned ten more pounds of silver.’ The master replied, ‘Well done, my good servant! Since you have proved yourself faithful in a small matter, I can trust you to take charge of ten cities.'”

“The second reported, ‘Sir, your pound of silver earned five more pounds of silver.’ The master replied, ‘And you, take charge of five cities!’ The third came in, and said, ‘Sir, here is your money, which I hid for safekeeping. I was afraid of you, for you are an exacting person : you take up what you did not lay down, and you reap what you did not sow.'”

“The master replied, ‘You worthless servant, I will judge you by your own words! So you knew I was an exacting person, taking up what I did not lay down, and reaping what I did not sow? Why, then, did you not put my money on loan, so that, when I got back, I could have collected it with interest?'”

“Then the master said to those standing by, ‘Take from him that pound, and give it to the one with ten pounds.’ But they objected, ‘Sir, he already has ten pounds!’ The master replied, ‘I tell you, everyone who has will be given more; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for my enemies who did not want me to be their king, bring them in, and execute them right here in front me.'”

So Jesus spoke, and then He passed on ahead of them, on His way to Jerusalem.

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Wednesday, 20 November 2024 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 150 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in the vault of heaven. Praise Him for His mighty deeds; praise Him for His own greatness.

Praise Him with trumpet blast; praise Him with lyre and harp. Praise Him with dance and tambourines; praise Him with pipe and strings.

Praise Him with clashing cymbals; praise Him with clanging cymbals. Let everything that breathes sing praise to the Lord. Alleluia!

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Wednesday, 20 November 2024 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Revelations 4 : 1-11

After this, I looked up to the wall of the sky and saw an open door. The voice which I had first speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here and I will show you what will come in the future.”

Immediately I was seized by the Spirit. There, in heaven, was a throne and One sitting on it. He Who sat there looked like jasper and carnelian and round the throne was a rainbow resembling an emerald. In a circle around the throne are twenty-four thrones and seated on these are twenty-four elders, dressed in white clothes, with golden crowns on their heads.

Flashes of lightning come forth from the throne, with voices and thunderclaps. Seven flaming torches burn before the throne; these are the seven Spirits of God. Before the throne there is a platform, transparent like crystal. Around and beside the throne stand four living creatures, full of eyes, both in front and behind.

The first living creature is like a lion, the second like a bull, the third has the face of a man and the fourth looks like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures has six wings full of eyes, all around as well as within; day and night they sing without ceasing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, Master of the universe, Who was, and is and is to come.”

Whenever the living creatures give glory, honour and thanks to the One on the throne, He Who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him and worship the One Who lives forever and ever. They lay their crowns in front of the throne and say, “Our Lord and God, worthy are You to receive glory, honour and power! For You have created all things; by Your will they came to be and were made.”

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Wednesday, 13 November 2024 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded to seek the Lord Who is our ever loving, compassionate and merciful God, the One Who has always shown His patient love and grace, attention and kindness towards us, despite us having constantly and consistently been disobedient towards Him, not listening to Him and disobeying His will, His Law and commandments. As our loving Father, the Lord has always been patient in loving us and in caring for us, forgiving us all of our sins and mistakes, our faults and all the things which we have done in defiance against His will, patiently reaching out towards us, helping and guiding us to walk in the right path, and showing us the path towards salvation and eternal life, hoping that we will turn away from our wicked path and return towards Him with renewed love and faith.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to St. Titus in which the Apostle spoke about the matter of how everyone of the faithful and holy people of God ought to be truly faithful to the Lord, and to distance themselves from all sorts of vices, evils and corruptions of the world. As Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, those whom He had called and chosen from this world, we are essentially expected to follow the path that the Lord has presented and guided us through, the path of His righteousness and virtue, through which we shall find the path to salvation in God. All of us are called to be good role models and inspirations for each other in faith, to be thoroughly dedicated to Him and to be the shining beacons of God’s light and truth from now on, if we have not yet done so.

That is because all of us have been saved by what the Lord had done for us in Jesus Christ, His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, just as St. Paul had reminded his protege, St. Titus and all of us, the faithful people of God. We must not take for granted everything that God had done for us, all the love that He has shown us most patiently and wonderfully. God has shown us all His love and generosity, compassion and kindness so that we can also follow His examples instead of as St. Paul said, hating one another and be filled with anger and malice in our hearts, thinking of nothing but ruin and destruction for others around us. As God’s holy and beloved people, each and every one of us are called to be those who are always filled with genuine love and kindness to one another, to be concerned with the needs and the plight of those who are suffering in our midst.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke in which the Lord Jesus encountered ten lepers that came to Him seeking for Him to heal them from their affliction. By that time, they certainly have heard well of the Lord and all the miraculous deeds and works that He had performed, and they hoped that they could heal them from their condition. At that time, as it had been since the time of Moses and the Exodus from the land of Egypt, those who suffered from leprosy had been ostracised and had to stay away from the cities and towns, having to wander off in the wilderness, and they could not rejoin the community and the other people of God until they had been healed from their afflictions and problems, showing themselves to a priest who could certify that they had been healed.

The Lord did indeed want to heal them all, but He also instructed them beforehand to show themselves to the priest according to the Law of God revealed through Moses. Those ten men obeyed His instruction, and on their way to the priest as we heard, they became healed and their leprosy left them. However, as all of them realised their fortune and became overjoyed, only one of the ten lepers bothered to come back to the Lord to thank Him for everything that He had done for them, while the other nine went on their way, presumably to resume their lives now that they were already free from their leprosy and problems. This is all a reminder for each and every one of us that we often seek God’s help, compassion and love, His mercy, forgiveness and grace, and we often cry out for His help, guidance and strength, and yet, we often forget about Him when things are good again for us.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is the sad nature of our faith and way of living our Christian existence that we frequently put God as secondary importance in our lives. We ignore and abandon Him whenever we do not have need for Him or His help, and we only remember Him whenever we have any need for help and assistance. And is that how we treat God’s generosity and kindness, brethren? Have we stooped so low so as to ignore our loving Father’s kindness and love, His ever patient and enduring love for us? Let us all really think and reflect about all these, as we remember the love and mercy which the Lord has shown us through His Son, in healing those ten lepers, just as He has healed us all from the affliction of our sins, the corruptions that had darkened our souls and separated us from God.

Sin is indeed a leprosy of the soul, as one would have put it and compared it rightly, as just like leprosy that eats upon the flesh and corrupts it, sin is a far more dangerous affliction on us. For what can harm the body can be cured by worldly means, by doctors and other methods known to us, but there is no cure and healing for sin save that of the healing and forgiveness provided by God alone. And the Lord willingly provides us this healing and cure, calling upon all of us to come back to His ever loving and comfortable embrace, in His Holy Presence. However, we need to make the commitment for this, to commit ourselves to follow Him and to dedicate ourselves to His cause, in recognising that each and every one of us have the part to play in our salvation, by accepting God’s generous offer of mercy and salvation, and by cooperating with Him and being grateful at all the love that He has shown us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence strive to live our lives worthily as Christians, to listen to and obey the Lord’s words and will, to heed His call for us to follow Him, and to realise just how blessed and fortunate we are to have been beloved by God. Let us all contemplate God’s generous love and then strive to embody the same love in all of our actions and dealings, interactions and works. Let our love be generously given as well then, in our love for the Lord and also in our love for our fellow brothers and sisters, so that by our love, people will indeed know the Lord and His love, and that they will also know that we are all His holy and beloved people. May God bless each one of us in our journey of faith and life, now and always. Amen.