Wednesday

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Wednesday, 10 January 2024 : 1st Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 39 : 2 and 5, 7-8a, 8b-9, 10

With resolve I waited for YHVH; He listened and heard me beg. Blessed is the one who relies on YHVH and does not look to the proud, nor go astray after false gods.

Sacrifice and oblation You did not desire; this, You had me understand. Burnt offering and sin offering You do not require. Then I said, “Here I come!”

As the scroll says of me. To do Your will is my delight, o God, for Your Law is within my heart.

In the great assembly I have proclaimed Your saving help. My lips, o YHVH, I did not seal – You know that very well.

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Wednesday, 10 January 2024 : 1st Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Samuel 3 : 1-10, 19-20

The boy Samuel ministered to YHVH under Eli’s care in a time in which the word of YHVH was rarely heard. Visions were not seen. One night Eli was lying down in his room, half blind as he was. The lamp of God was still lighted and Samuel also lay in the house of YHVH near the Ark of God.

Then YHVH called, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel answered, “I am here!” and ran to Eli saying, “I am here, did you not call me?” But Eli said, “I did not call. Go back to sleep.” So he went and lay down. Then YHVH called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel stood up and went to Eli saying, “You called me; I am here.” But Eli answered, “I did not call you, my son. Go back to sleep.”

Samuel did not yet know YHVH; and the word of YHVH had not yet been revealed to him. But YHVH called Samuel for the third time; and he went again to Eli saying, “I am here for you have called me.” Eli realised that it was YHVH calling the boy. So he said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if He calls you again, answer : ‘Speak, YHVH, Your servant listens.’”

Then YHVH came and stood there calling “Samuel! Samuel!” as He did before. And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant listens.” Samuel grew. YHVH was with him and made all his words become true. All Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, knew that Samuel was really YHVH’s prophet.

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Wednesday, 3 January 2024 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, which is a truly timely and proper celebration considering that we are still in the middle of the Christmas season, in which we celebrate the birth of the Lord Jesus Himself, the Son of God Most High, incarnate in the flesh and appearing before all of us, as the perfect manifestation of God’s Love. On this day we honour and remember this Name which has been revealed to us, through the Archangel Gabriel, who revealed the Name of Our Lord and Saviour to Mary, the Lord’s Mother, to be the Name which is above all the other names, a Name by which all of us mankind are to be saved and liberated from all of our sins and bondage.

Today we focus on the importance of why the Most Holy Name of Jesus is so crucial for us all and how it is related to Christmas. It is because through His Incarnation, the Lord Himself has adopted our human existence, and as He has been born as a Child as all of us are, therefore, He has been given a name, just as Adam and Eve, our first ancestors had been given names by the Lord, and all of us ever since, in our own languages and terms. This is because it is by our name that we are known and called by others, and it is therefore by having been given a Name, the Lord may be known to us and revealed fully in His love and kindness. Through the Most Holy Name of Jesus, all of us have been liberated and freed from all bondage of sin and death.

Now, the Lord actually does have a Name, as if we read through the Old Testament and know about the history of the Israelites and how they perceive God, the Lord God was known as YHVH or Yahweh, also known as Tetragrammaton. This Holy Name of God was not meant to be pronounced or uttered, as it was considered a taboo for anyone to utter it, in any occasion. The only person who could utter the Holy Name of God was only the High Priest, and even so, he could only utter the Holy Name of God on a particular occasion in the year, as he entered into the Holy of Holies to meet with the Lord and be in His Presence. This is also related to the Third Commandment of the Ten Commandments that God had given to the people of Israel, which is ‘Keep holy the Name of the Lord’.

This is related to just how holy and mighty the Lord is, and how He has been perceived throughout the Old Testament, that even His Name cannot be uttered by us mankind, because of the sins we have committed which made us to be unworthy and separated from His love and grace. However, this is where then what the Lord had done for us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, has made Himself more available and approachable to us. How is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because by Him adopting our human flesh, nature and existence, He has come into our midst, becoming tangible, real and approachable to each and every one of us. His Name, Jesus, which the Archangel Gabriel revealed to Mary, is therefore a Name that we all can call, as the Name of Our Lord and Saviour, the Name in Whom we all hold on to hope for salvation in God.

Yet, while the Name of Jesus, unlike God’s Name in the Old Testament, is a Name that we can invoke, call upon and relate, or utter in our daily lives, at the same time, we must also not forget that this is still the Holy Name of God that we must always honour and respect above all and every other names, and which we should accord respect and honour even greater to the honour and respect that we give to ourselves. Why is that so? That is because through Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, God had endeavoured to reach out to us and to bring us all to His redemption. God did not want us to be separated from Him, and hence, He gave us all His beloved Son, Jesus, by Whose Name all of us have received the assurance of eternal life and redemption.

We are all reminded that we all should appreciate and use the Name of Jesus with proper respect, honour and decorum, and not to utter or call His Name in vain. We must not be misusing the Lord’s Name or taking Him for granted, just as how many of us often take His Name lightly, and in some cases, even using His Name in curses and profanities, which are definitely not appropriate at all. One of the reason why people are losing their faith in God is because we have lost the sense of sanctity of God in our lives today, and this happened exactly because we have chosen to treat Him with disdain and did not honour and respect Him as we should have, and when we treat His Name without proper decorum and understanding just how powerful His Name is.

As St. Paul said in our second reading today, in his Epistle to the Philippians, that this is the Name by which all the knees of those in the Heaven, on earth or below the earth, in the underworld, essentially in all Creation and all of the Universe, shall bend, kneel and prostrate themselves. Even the devil, our great enemy, Satan the deceiver had to subject himself to the power of God, and in the Most Holy Name of Jesus is indeed among the most powerful weapon we have against Him, because through the Most Holy Name of Jesus, all those who seek to oppose us, shall be conquered, vanquished and defeated. This is why we must never take the Lord’s Holy Name for granted and we have to honour and respect it, as truly befitting our Lord, Master and King.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore put our hope and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, ever being reminded that in Him alone there is hope in the darkness of our world, and in His Name alone there is healing, liberation and freedom from the darkness of evil and sin. Let us all therefore strive to do our best in loving God and in entrusting ourselves to Him so that in everything that we all say and do, we will always be aligned to the Lord and His path, and continue to walk ever more righteously and with commitment to Him, at all times. May God bless us always and may He empower us all, to live in His Presence, entrusting ourselves to His Most Holy Name, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Wednesday, 3 January 2024 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 1 : 29-34

At that time, the next day John saw Jesus coming towards him, and said, “There is the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world! It is He of Whom I said : A Man comes after me, Who is already ahead of me, for He was before me. I myself did not know Him, but I came baptising to prepare for Him, so that He might be revealed in Israel.”

And John also gave this testimony, “I saw the Spirit coming down on Him like a dove from heaven, and resting on Him. I myself did not know Him, but God, Who sent me to baptise, told me, “You will see the Spirit coming down, and resting, on the One Who baptises with the Holy Spirit.’ Yes, I have seen! And I declare that this is the Chosen One of God!”

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Jesus)

Luke 2 : 21-24

On the eighth day, the circumcision of the Baby had to be performed; He was named Jesus, the Name the Angel had given Him before He was conceived. When the day came for the purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought the Baby up to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord, as it is written in the Law of the Lord : Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to God.

And they offered a sacrifice, as ordered in the Law of the Lord : a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.

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Wednesday, 3 January 2024 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 97 : 1, 3cd-4, 5-6

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

The farthest ends of the earth all have seen God’s saving power. All you lands, make a joyful noise to the Lord, break into song and sing praise.

With melody of the lyre and with music of the harp. With trumpet blast and sound of the horn, rejoice before the King, the Lord!

Alternative Psalm (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Jesus)

Psalm 8 : 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

When I observe the heavens, the work of Your hands, the moon, and the stars You set in their place – what is man, that You be mindful of him; the Son of Man, that You should care for Him?

Yet You made Him a little less than a god; You crowned Him with glory and honour and gave Him the works of Your hands; You have put all things under His feet.

Sheep and oxen without number, and even the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and all that swim the paths of the ocean.

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Wednesday, 3 January 2024 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 2 : 29 – 1 John 3 : 6

You know that He is the Just One : know then that anyone living justly is born of God. See what singular love the Father has for us : we are called children of God, and we really are. This is why the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Beloved, we are God’s children and what we shall be has not yet been shown. Yet when He appears in His glory, we know that we shall be like Him, for then we shall see Him as He is. All who have such a hope try to be pure as He is pure. Anyone who commits a sin acts as an enemy of the law of God; any sin acts wickedly, because all sin is wickedness.

You know that He came to take away our sins, and that there is no sin in Him. Whoever remains in Him has no sin, whoever sins has not seen or known Him.

Alternative reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Jesus)

Philippians 2 : 1-11

If I may advise you, in the Name of Christ, and if you can hear it, as the voice of love; if we share the same Spirit, and are capable of mercy and compassion, then I beg of you, make me very happy : have one love, one spirit, one feeling, do nothing through rivalry or vain conceit.

On the contrary, let each of you gently consider the others, as more important than yourselves. Do not seek your own interest, but, rather, that of others. Your attitude should be the same as Jesus Christ had :

Though He was in the form of God, He did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking on the nature of a servant, made in human likeness, and in His appearance found as a Man.

He humbled Himself by being obedient to death, death on the cross. That is why God exalted Him and gave Him the Name which outshines all names, so that at the Name of Jesus all knees should bend in heaven, on earth and among the dead, and all tongues proclaim that Christ Jesus is the Lord to the glory of God the Father.

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Wednesday, 27 December 2023 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, commemorating this great man of God whose faith, commitment and dedication to God had brought unto us all a truly great testimony of faith, inspiring all of us in our own way of life and committing ourselves to the Lord. St. John, Holy Apostle and Evangelist, was known as a great disciple of Christ, the one whom the Lord cared for and loved, and through his experiences and understanding of the Lord, St. John revealed unto us the nature of God’s love and kindness, which He has shown unto us through His Son, Jesus Christ, with Whom St. John had lived with, laboured together and ministered to the people of God, as written and recorded in the Gospels.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. John in which the Apostle St. John himself described the truth about the Love of God which had been manifested and revealed unto us through the same Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is this same Christ Who is the One that we celebrate about during this joyous and magnificent Christmas season and time. Christ, our Lord and Redeemer, through Whom the Lord has shown His ever enduring and persistent love, by which He has reached out to us, touching us all with His compassion and mercy, restoring unto us the life that He has always intended to have, giving reason and purpose to our lives, through Him, Who is the Lord and Master of Life, the Lord over our every lives.

This is something that He truly can reassure us with, as He Himself has shown St. John in person what He stands for, all that He has taught and delivered into our midst, as He proclaimed God’s love and forgiveness for each and every one of us sinners, and how He overcame even sin and death during the time of His Passion, His suffering and death, and ultimately, His glorious Resurrection as highlighted in our Gospel passage today. St. John himself had been with the Lord for a very long time relative to His ministry as he was among the first disciples whom He had called, ever since he was called with his brother, St. James the Greater at the Lake of Galilee. He, one of the two sons of Zebedee was called by the Lord, and he answered the Lord with a resolute faith.

St. John witnessed many of the Lord’s most important miracles and wonders, himself being one of the few inner circle members of the Lord’s followers, together with his own brother and with St. Peter the Apostle. He saw how the Lord healed the sick in many occasions, and even restored the life to those who have been deceased, such as the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue official, the son of the widow of Naim, as well as Lazarus, one of the Lord’s own good friends. All of them had succumbed to death, and yet, the Lord showed St. John and His other disciples and followers, that He is truly the Lord and Master of life, the Holy One and Saviour of the whole world. He raised them up and restored them all back unto life, and then, ultimately, as we heard in our Gospel passage today, the Lord Jesus Himself conquered death and overcome it, as He gloriously returned to life, in His Resurrection.

St. John the Apostle saw and witnessed all of these things, just as the Gospel passage today mentioned to us. The Lord appeared on Easter Sunday morning to St. Mary Magdalene in which He revealed that He has risen from the dead, and did not remain in the realm of the dead just as He has predicted earlier, that He would rise again on the third day. St. Mary Magdalene thus proclaimed this truth to the other Apostles, revealing about the Resurrection and hence, the hope that has been renewed in Christ, Who has conquered and overcome death for us, joining us back to our Lord and Creator. St. John hence believed wholeheartedly in the Risen Lord, and ever since that, he committed his whole life to proclaim the Good News of God.

That was what St. John had done for many decades afterwards, as he went from places to places in helping to establish the Church and its communities, in his efforts to proclaim the Word of God and His truth to more and more people. St. John himself also suffered many trials and hardships as he had to endure persecutions, oppressions and even exiles, which saw him exiled in one occasion to the Island of Patmos in his old age, where he famously received the revelations about the end times from the Lord, which he wrote down and we now know as the Book of the Revelations or the Apocalypse of St. John the Apostle. He was the only one among the Apostles of the Lord who did not die as a martyr, instead passed away peacefully in a very old age.

Yet, St. John had also faced a lot of sufferings and struggles throughout all those years, which nonetheless did not dampen his faith or the enthusiasm to spread the Good News of Christ. All of these works and dedications of St. John the Apostle should indeed be inspiration for all of us as Christians to follow in our own lives. We should be inspired to follow in the footsteps and the actions which St. John had done in proclaiming God’s truth in our own community today, by doing whatever we can so that our lives may truly be filled with true and genuine Christian values, as well as with strong desire to love the Lord our God, and also His people, our own brethren in the same Lord. This is why today, through our remembrance of St. John and all of his actions and life, we all should continue to strive to be great and faithful disciples of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence be ever more committed in our lives and calling as Christians so that in whatever we say and do, on all the things we carry out in our everyday moments, we will always strive to do what God has called us to do and what He has entrusted to us. Let us all be ever more dedicated in putting more and more of our efforts and focus on Him, and be good role models and inspiration to one another just as St. John the Apostle has inspired us. In this Christmas season, let us all remind each other that Christ is truly the reason why we all rejoice and celebrate this magnificent and joyful feast, and let us all endeavour to proclaim Him to all mankind, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 27 December 2023 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 20 : 2-8

At that time, Mary of Magdala ran to Peter, and the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and she said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

Peter then set out with the other disciple to go out to the tomb. They ran together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down and saw the linen cloths lying flat, but he did not enter. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and entered the tomb; he, too, saw the linen cloths lying flat.

The napkin, which had been around His head, was not lying flat like the other linen cloths, but lay rolled up in its place. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in; he saw and believed.

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Wednesday, 27 December 2023 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 96 : 1-2, 5-6, 11-12

The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the distant islands be glad. Clouds and darkness surround Him; justice and right are His throne.

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His justice, all peoples see His glory.

He sheds light upon the upright, and gladness upon the just. Rejoice in the Lord, you who are blameless, and give praise to His holy Name.

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Wednesday, 27 December 2023 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 1 : 1-4

This is what has been from the beginning, and what we have heard and have seen with our own eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, I mean the Word Who is Life…

The Life made Itself known, we have seen Eternal Life and we bear witness, and we are telling you of it. It was with the Father and made Himself known to us. So we tell you what we have seen and heard, that you may be in fellowship with us, and us, with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

And we write this that our joy may be complete.