Weekday Homily

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Friday, 31 January 2025 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Bosco, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the need for all of us as Christians to embody our faith in everything that we say and do, to be truly faithful to God in all things and to be sincere in how we live our lives with faith and not to be merely paying lip service or be superficial in how we live our Christian living and commitments. Each and every one of us are parts of the Kingdom of God, the Church, which the Lord has established in this world and made manifest through each and every one of us living our lives in the manner that He Himself has revealed and taught to us. If we do not truly live in our lives in the manner that we have been expected to, then we cannot truly call or consider ourselves as true and genuine Christians.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle to the Hebrews in which the author of this Epistle continued to remind the faithful people of God, especially those who belonged to the Jewish community in the early Church of the guidance and providence that their Lord and God would grant them as He would always be by their side, journeying with them and remaining with them throughout their respective journeys in life. The author spoke of the sufferings, challenges and difficulties that the faithful people of God had to suffer amidst their lives as Christians, in opposing the falsehoods and the evils of the world, and also in facing the disapproval from all those who disagreed with them and did not believe in what they believed in. And he also spoke of the good deeds and actions which the faithful had continued to do despite those difficulties and challenges that they had to face.

The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews also spoke about the need for the people of God to remain strong and faithful amidst the many challenges, struggles and problems that they might have to face in their journey as followers of the Lord, and encouraged and reassured them that they would be vindicated and would earn their rest in the Lord in the end, if they continued to remain faithful and firm in their conviction to follow the Lord and in continuing to adhere to His Law, commandments and teachings. It is an important reminder for all of us that we must always centre our lives and focus our attention on the Lord, and put our complete trust and faith in Him, and we should not allow fear, worry or doubt to overcome us, or to distract us from our faith in the Lord, from this path towards Him and His salvation and eternal life.

Then, in our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples and followers, and to all others who were listening to Him about the kingdom of God which He presented to them using parables to explain to them its importance, meaning and significance. The kingdom of God is likened to a man sowing seeds in the field, and how the seeds grew into plants and produce their fruits bountifully by the grace of God, reminding us of God’s guidance for His Church and for all of us Christians in each and every parts of our efforts and works. We must always have faith in the Lord and put our trust in Him, as without His guidance and providence, nothing that we do can bear any fruits, at all. Everything is possible because of God and His Presence in our lives.

The other parable that the Lord used was the parable of the mustard seed, which is a very small seed, and yet, when it grows, it becomes a very large tree relative to the size of its seed, and the Lord mentioned how this mustard tree can become shelter for many birds that came to seek roost and shelter upon the tree’s many branches. This is a reminder for us that each and every one of our works, efforts and contributions do matter a lot, and the Lord Himself used the same mustard seed example in another occasion to highlight how even small faith the size of a mustard seed, used as a figurative comparison, can move mountains, showing that a genuine and true faith, filled with devotion and true commitment to God can do amazing things, beyond our imagination and beliefs.

This is why we have been reminded through this reading today from the parables that the Lord had taught to His disciples, that we should always be active in living up to our Christian calling and mission, making good use of whatever gifts, blessings and opportunities that the Lord has provided us with, and we should not be afraid or fearful, or be doubtful of the Lord and His guidance and providence. The Lord Who is ever faithful and committed to the Covenant that He has made with us, will always be by our side, even through the most difficult and challenging moments. Yes, we may have to suffer and face hardships, but so has the Lord our Saviour Himself suffered for our sake, and He has triumphed over His enemies, over sin and death, and through His victory, all of us will also share in His triumph as well.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. John Bosco, a well-renowned priest and saint, a holy man and devoted servant of God who have lived his life worthily of the Lord, ever devoted to the cause of the Lord and His Church particularly to those people whom he had committed himself in serving, the children and other juveniles living in the streets and those youths who had been abandoned by their families and the community. St. John Bosco spent his time working with the orphans and abandoned boys, especially those who were neglected and ignored by the society, establishing eventually a safe place and home for all of them to stay in and to be taken good care of, educated and equipped with good skills to help them to survive in the society.

This place, called the Oratorio, also served to take care of the needs of the community around it, and the efforts and works of St. John Bosco gained a lot of good fruits. But with the successes also came a lot of challenges and hardships, just as our Scripture passages today had told us and which we had just discussed. Some of the townspeople and council members opposed the works of St. John Bosco, slandered him and spread false accusations of his works with the orphans and abandoned boys, that they had to move from place to place, and had to face eviction in some occasions. Yet, St. John Bosco did not easily give up his works and efforts, and he continued to do his best to labour for the sake of the people of God, for the marginalised and least of the society, to the end of his life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired by the good examples set by St. John Bosco and by our many other holy predecessors, and as members and parts of the Church of God, the Kingdom of God which the Lord Himself has established int his world, let us all realise our duties and responsibilities in fulfilling the missions which have been entrusted to us as those whom God had called and chosen to be His own. Let us all and our lives, each and every one of our words, actions and deeds continue to be inspired by our faith and obedience to God, our love for Him and our willingness to commit ourselves thoroughly to His cause. Let our efforts and good works be truly manifesting in the many successes of the works of the Church, in the salvation of ever more souls, leading more and more towards God and His salvation. May God be with us always, and bless our every good endeavours, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 30 January 2025 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are reminded through the readings of the Sacred Scriptures in which we are all called to be active in fulfilling the many responsibilities and missions, the duties and works that we have been given, the opportunities and the many other things that God has given to us. All of us as Christians must always strive to carry out all those duties and works with great faith and commitment, and we should not be ignorant of this calling and mission which God has entrusted to us. To be a truly dedicated and faithful Christian, each and every one of us must always be active in the efforts to serve and glorify the Lord by our lives, to do what He has commanded to us, taught and shown us to do in our lives.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle to the Hebrews, we heard of the continuation of the exhortation by the author of this Epistle, held by many Biblical experts and scholars to be St. Luke the Evangelist, in which he continued to remind the Jewish community of the works and efforts which the Lord Himself has done for our sake through the sending of His most beloved Son, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, to be our High Priest and the One to deliver us all from the jaws of death by breaking us from the chains and domination by sin, evil and wickedness all around us. Through Christ, our Lord, Who has willingly taken upon Himself the many burdens of our sins and evils, and by offering His own Most Precious Body and Blood, God has redeemed us all and opened for us the sure path towards eternal life.

But as we have been made partakers of this Covenant, the New and Eternal Covenant that God Himself has made with us, His beloved and holy people, therefore, all of us are reminded again and again that a Covenant between us and God is not meant to be one way, as a Covenant is a most solemn agreement between two parties in which both parties agree to abide by the terms of the Covenant, the agreement that we have bound over us, and in this case, which has been sealed and made firm by the Blood of the Lamb of God, as He laid dying on the Cross at Calvary. It is therefore a reminder for all of us not to ignore our part in this Covenant between God and us, and we have to commit ourselves to the Lord wholeheartedly and completely just as the Lord Himself had done the same as well.

As Christians, it is important that we are the ones to proclaim the Lord to the whole world, His salvation and everything that He has taught and revealed to us. And therefore, we ought to adhere well to the path that He has shown to us, and help one another, just as the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews had said, to remain courageous and faithful in how we all live our lives in accordance with God and His path. We are all called to follow the Lord with ever greater commitment and devotion, and to help and inspire one another so that by our good examples and inspirations, many more among us may be touched, strengthened and awakened in our faith and in our desire to live a truly holy life in the Lord’s Presence, to be true and faithful Christians at all times.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord speaking with a parable to His disciples and to all the others who were then following Him, using the parable of the lamp or the light of the world. He told and reminded all of them that no one hid a lighted lamp under a table or bed, as a lamp that is lit but hidden serves no purpose and is utterly useless. This is a reminder for all the disciples and the people of God, and hence, all of us who have listened to these words that we should not be idle in the living of our faith, and as Christians, it is imperative that we fulfil our obligations and do whatever we can so that our lives will always be rich and full of virtue at all circumstances, to be truly full of love for God in everything that we say and do.

And the Lord also mentioned that the measure that a person has been given, is the measure that he or she is expected to give as well, which is yet another reminder that we have to be active in living our lives, devoting our time, effort and contributions to serve the Lord and to be the shining beacons of His light and truth in the midst of our communities and societies today. The Lord has given each and every one of us unique and diverse set of gifts, talents, abilities, and many opportunities for us to make good use of what He has given us so that we may truly enrich each others’ lives and fill one another with love, care and compassion. This is what He has expected us all to do, and in case we have not realised it yet, then we should begin doing so from now on.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reorientate our lives and seek to follow the Lord ever more firmly and with ever greater love and devotion, dedicating the time and the resources to live a most Christian life, not just in mere words or appearances alone, but also in true devotion, commitment, action and the true application of whatever it is that we have believed in the Lord. We should always strive to be good Christians at all opportunities and in every circumstances, listening to the Lord and allowing Him to lead and guide us down the right path. We must not be idle or ignorant anymore of our mission, vocation and calling in life, and if we have not realised what these are yet, then we should spend the time to listen to the Lord calling us, and speaking to us in the depth of our hearts and minds, and remove all that had distracted and kept Him away from us, all the temptations and distractions around us in this world.

May the Lord, our ever loving God and Father, our Creator and Master continue to help and strengthen each and every one of us so that we may continue to persevere through the many different challenges and hardships that we may have to face in our journey of faith and life. May He continue to give us the strength and courage to walk down this path that He has led us into, and guide us along the journey so that we may continue to be the worthy disciples and followers of His, in everything that we say and do, in each and every moments of our lives, to lead more and more people towards the Lord. Amen.

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(Special) Wednesday, 29 January 2025 : Chinese New Year Mass (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today for all those of us who are celebrating the Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year to the Chinese people who celebrate it every year. This day marks the celebration of the beginning of the end of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, as it was noted as the Spring Festival due to the period of time being the time when the temperatures of the ground and the environment begin to increase again after it has declined over the past few weeks and months. It is a truly joyful celebration as families and relatives come together to celebrate the beginning of the new lunisolar year, sharing their love with each other and meeting those whom they have not probably seen in a year or even more. It is a time for joyful reunion and happiness for everyone.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Numbers in which the Lord told Moses about how his brother Aaron and his sons, those whom God had appointed as priests over the people of Israel ought to give the blessings to the people, which God happily and readily would provide for all of them. The Lord provides for all of His people in need, giving them all His love and kindness, and nothing can happen to us without the Lord knowing about it. This is why, as we all rejoice wonderfully during this time of the Chinese New Year and all the associated celebrations and festivities, we must always keep in mind that our rejoicing, our good fortunes and all the good things we enjoy do not come about from our efforts alone, and we should be careful lest we think that we can gain more prosperity, pleasures and good things of the world if we continue to indulge in them.

That is why all of us are reminded that God alone is the source of all of our blessings and graces, and we must be careful as we carry on our numerous Chinese cultural practices and expressions that we do not end up subscribing to the various superstitious practices and beliefs that surround the celebration of the Chinese New Year and other related events. As Chinese Catholics, it is important that we continue to put God at the centre of our lives and existence, while at the same time, fully immersing ourselves in our rich history and culture, and this venerable and wonderful practice of observing the beginning of the new Lunisolar Year, the Chinese New Year. We should be good examples and inspirations for everyone around us, in how we observe this cultural celebration we rejoice greatly today.

In our second reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. James the Apostle, we heard the important reminder about our lives in this world and how we should not spend our time worrying too much about what we are going to do tomorrow, or to plan too extensively about how the upcoming year will be like. This echoes what the Lord Himself has said about how we all should not spend so much time and effort in busying ourselves to worry about the future, or in all of our actions and works in trying to gain more worldly things and riches for ourselves. After all, matters of live and death, and all the things in this world, all are truly beyond our control, and only God alone knows our fate, and whichever path and ending that will be ours. We should therefore put our focus instead on living our lives courageously in our faith in God, doing whatever we can do, to glorify God by our lives.

In this time and celebration of the Chinese New Year, we must be wary and vigilant so that we do not end up being overwhelmed and overtaken by the plentiful of temptations on worldly glory, wealth and ambition, of the pursuit for prosperity and other worldly temptations around us. We must always remember that as Christians, we are all living in this world with the primary objective of serving the Lord our God, to proclaim His truth and Good News to all the people, and to be the light for all the nations. We do not serve the God of Money and Wealth, or the God of Prosperity and Worldly Glory, but instead, we serve and worship the One and only True God, the Lord and Master of all things, He Who shows us the path that transcends the limitations and imperfections of this world.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which the Lord told His disciples and all those who have followed Him that all of them should not be worried at all about their lives and about what they might encounter in their lives and paths. Instead they should continue to hold firmly in the faith and hope that they ought to have in the Lord, never doubting the providence and the love which God, their heavenly Father and Master has for each and every one of them. The Lord Jesus also reassured all of His disciples that God knew everything that they needed, and they had no need to worry about anything. They should instead focus upon doing what is right and just in God’s path, and God will lead them down the right path, providing them in everything that they needed in life and beyond.

Brothers and sisters, therefore, as we have heard and reflected upon from the messages of the Sacred Scripture that we have received today, on this glorious and most joyful celebration of the Chinese New Year, let us all keep in mind that as we begin this new year, full of hope and aspiration for the coming year ahead, we must never forget that without God we are all nothing, and all of our blessings, good things and everything we enjoy in this life, all became possible because God was with us, blessing us and providing us with everything that we need. We should not become big-headed, proud and haughty, or greedy in our desire for more worldly things and ambitions. Instead, we should be ever more generous in sharing and giving our blessings with one another, especially if we have been blessed with excess, and there are others around us who are suffering and facing difficulties in even making ends meet each day.

May all of our celebrations and festivities during this Chinese New Year period be ever more blessed by God and be attuned fully to His path. Let us all not indulge in the excesses of worldly comfort, merrymaking and rejoicing, but let us instead be willing to share our many blessings and gifts with one another, focusing not so much on prosperity and other temporary, impermanent worldly desires and pursuits. We should remember that first and foremost, this New Year is the perfect opportunity for us to renew our commitments to God, to entrust ourselves and our lives anew to Him. Let us all be ever more devoted in living our lives with ever greater faith, in each and every moments of our lives, so that by our exemplary living, we will come ever closer to the Lord, and be the bearers of His truth and love in our world today.

Let us all share the joy of Christ, His love and kindness to everyone we spend our time with and rejoice with during this festive season. May God bless our families and everyone in our groups and communities, and may He continue to be with us, strengthening us all so that we may continue to grow in faith and persevere despite the challenges we may be facing in life, rooting ourselves and our families ever in the Lord. Wishing everyone a most blessed, holy and wonderful Chinese New Year, truly blessed by God. Amen.

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Wednesday, 29 January 2025 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have listened through the readings from the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded again of what the Lord our God has done to us through His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, Who has freely and willingly offered Himself out of obedience to His heavenly Father, so that He might become the perfect and worthy sacrifice and offering for the salvation of all mankind. This truth is something that all of us as Christians have believed and uphold to be the core tenet of our faith. Each and every one of us must remember and keep in mind this faith and belief that we have, and it is important that we have to nurture this faith in us, by continuing to deepen our relationship with the Lord, or else, we may find ourselves easily swayed and tempted by the various pressures, temptations and other obstacles present all around us.

In our first reading today, we heard again from the Epistle to the Hebrews, the continuation of the discourse by the author of the Epistle to the Jewish community of the time, about the role that Christ, the Saviour of the world has done in saving the people, and in revealing the manifested love of God in the flesh, acting as our One True and Eternal High Priest, offering Himself as the perfect and worthy offering to redeem all of us from our many sins and wickedness, establishing and affirming the New and Eternal Covenant between us and God, restoring to us the unity and grace that have been denied to us ever since we have fallen into sin, allowing the corruptions of sin to lead us astray from the Lord and His loving Presence. And the Lord has done it all at once through His ultimate loving sacrifice on the Cross.

As I have mentioned in previous days’ reflections and homily, this elaboration and exhortation by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews must be understood in the context of the need for the sacrifices to be made regularly by the people through the priests at the Temple of God for them to atone for the sins they committed. And they, including the priests themselves had to repeatedly offer the sacrifices and offerings because of their sins, as none of those sacrifices could bring about lasting reprieve and liberation from the domination and power of sin, darkness and evil. It was only the sacrifice and offering which the Lord Jesus, the Saviour of all offered on our behalf, the offering of the Most Precious Body and the Most Precious Blood of the Lamb and Son of God Incarnate that could redeem all of us from our sins.

And it was mentioned how the Lord has triumphed against sin and death, destroying forever their hold on us, and He has established with all of us the New and Eternal Covenant that God has intended to form with us. This New Covenant has been established, made firm and sealed through the sacrifice of the Blood of the Lamb of God, slain on the Altar of the Cross at Calvary. Through Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, we have received this great grace from God, the promise of everlasting life that we have shared and partaken through the Holy Eucharist, which is the same sacrifice and offering that Our Lord Himself has made at Calvary for us. That is why as Christians, all of us are reminded of this very important truth as we continue to progress through life so that we will always appreciate what the Lord has generously given us all.

Then, in our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist we heard of the teachings of the Lord Jesus using a well-known parable, the parable of the sower, which He shared and explained to the people gathered to listen to Him, and He also then explained the parable in greater detail to His disciples and followers. This parable of the sower highlights how the Lord, as the Sower, has sowed the seeds of faith, truth, hope and love in all of us, and he has generously given all of these to us, with the intention that all of us may cultivate these gifts and faith in us so that they may truly benefit everyone around us. If we do not make good use of these gifts, talents, abilities and opportunities that the Lord has provuided, then we will not bear fruit in our faith, and we will not be found worthy at the time of judgment and reckoning.

As mentioned in the parable of the sower and in the explanation that the Lord presented to His disciples, the seeds fell on different places which represent the different conditions which the people of God have received those seeds of faith. And the Lord explained it clearly how the seeds that fell on the roadside, or by the rocky grounds and those that were surrounded by brambles and thistles, all of them allowed the evil one and the temptations, pressures and coercions of this world to dissuade them from truly committing themselves to the Lord and the path of His salvation and grace. And that was why many of them could not appreciate the Word of God, His Good News, truth and love, and everything which God has given them most generously through His Son and through the Holy Spirit that He has sent into our midst.

Meanwhile, those who have placed their seeds in good and fertile soil as mentioned are those who have allowed the Lord, His truth and love to grow in them, to be cultivated well and to allow them to come ever closer to the Lord. This is an important lesson which all of us are reminded of, a reminder that each and every one of us share the responsibility as part of the Covenant which the Lord has established with us, the New and Eternal Covenant that He has made and affirmed with us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Without this conscious effort to cultivate a good, strong and enduring relationship with God, through prayer and quality time spent with God, and through living our lives worthily in God’s Presence, and amongst the communities of the world we are living in today.

And it is through this commitment of our time, effort and by providing a conducive environment for our faith to grow and develop that we can truly be fruitful and grow wonderfully in our Christian faith, and in becoming worthy disciples and followers of the Lord. How can we do this, brothers and sisters in Christ?  We can do this through constant reception of the Holy Eucharist in the Holy Mass, active participation in the efforts and works of the Church, and constant and regular participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to allow ourselves to grow ever stronger in our dedication towards the Lord and to attune ourselves ever better towards the ways and the teachings, the ideals of our Christian belief and faith.

We are all called to be good role models and inspirations towards one another, and through our great examples, this is how we may truly bless so many others with the grace of God, becoming that fruitful and faithful servant of God, bearing forth so many good and wonderful deeds, always anchored ever strongly and firmly in our faith and love towards the Lord. May the Lord our most loving God, Father and Creator, our Lord and Master continue to help us all and guide us in our journey of faith through life in this world, now and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 28 January 2025 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures that we have received today, we are all reminded that we are partakers of the same Covenant which our Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour has formed and mediated for us, and which He has established and sealed through the breaking of His own Most Precious Body and the outpouring of His own Most Precious Blood, the Body and Blood of the Holy Lamb of God, the One Who takes away the sins of the whole world, of all mankind, past, present and future. And therefore, as we have been given this great gift from God, the outpouring and sharing of the most generous love of God, we should hence appreciate what the Lord has granted us and learn to obey Him wholeheartedly at all times, doing our best to walk in His Holy Presence and living our lives to the best of our abilities as faithful disciples and followers of God.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the discourse we have heard for the past few weeks from the Epistle to the Hebrews, we heard the author of the Epistle explaining to the intended audience, the Jewish community and people, likely both the believers among them and also those who have not yet believed in Christ, about the nature of the works of the Messiah, Who has offered Himself as a worthy sacrifice and offering to redeem all of us sinners. The context was that the requirement by the Law of God revealed to Moses obliged the people to offer sacrifices to the Lord regularly for the cleansing from their sins and debts, which they had to offer through the priests at the Temple and House of God.

And by the nature of those sacrificial offerings, they had to be offered regularly and periodically, as the offerings were animals and other earthly offerings that cannot be enough to be offered to atone for the multitudes of our innumerable sins. There is one and only one sacrifice and offering that is worthy and good enough for that purpose, and that is exactly what the Lord Jesus had offered for our sake. He has given freely the offering of His own Most Precious Body and Blood, the Immaculate, Perfect and Infinitely wonderful Body and Blood of the Paschal Lamb, the Divine Word Incarnate. There can be no greater offering than the offering of God made Man, God Who loves us all so much that He has willingly embraced us all with His most generous love and mercy, giving us all the assurance of hope and eternal life.

And because of this most wonderful and generous love of God, Christ has offered for us the one only necessary sacrifice and offering for the atonement of all of our multitudes of sins. There is no longer any need for us to bear the burden of sin, as long as we put ourselves, our lives and our faith in the Lord, and commit ourselves wholeheartedly to Him, as we all should be doing. That is why the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews mentioned that the sacrifice and offerings which the Lord Jesus, the Saviour of the world has offered on the Altar of His Cross has nullified the need for the regular sacrifices and offerings at the Temple of God as prescribed by the old Law of God, and instead, everyone has been called to embrace God’s love and put their faith in Him.

In that same occasion, we also heard how the author mentioned that the Lord Jesus has obeyed His Father’s will perfectly, to do what He has been sent to do in this world, to show that if by our disobedience and disregard of God’s Law and will we have fallen into sin and destruction, the path to damnation and downfall, then by listening to God and obeying His will, all of us can be restored to grace and be reconciled with God, our most loving Father and Creator. We have been given the free will and the freedom to choose the path that we want to walk in our lives. If we choose to follow the Lord and obey Him, walking in the path that He has shown us, then He will guide us to the sure path towards everlasting life and eternity of happiness and joy with Him. But, if we choose to walk our own path, and allow the temptations of sin to mislead us into the wrong path, we may end up falling into eternal damnation and regret our choice later on.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the people told the Lord Jesus Who was busy teaching all of them that His mother and other family members were there waiting on Him. Then, the Lord immediately told all of them that all those who obey Him and the words and will of God are His mother, brothers and relatives. If we only read this remark from the face value and interpret it literally, then we may think that the Lord had been very rude towards His mother and relatives. However, what the Lord Jesus truly intended by mentioning those words was that everyone are welcome to come to Him and all are equally beloved to Him. There is no favouritism by the Lord, and it does not mean that one has privilege simply by being related to Him.

This is contrasted to the common attitude and actions of many people at the time, and even up to this day, where we tend to give special favours and treatment, over others who are not related to us. Meanwhile, the Lord gives this opportunity of reconciliation between us and Himself generously and equally regardless of our background and origin, and no one is to be excluded from the generous love of God, no matter what. And as we heard from our first reading today and discussed earlier, it was by the selfless and most loving sacrifice of Christ that we have been saved. That is why we are truly very fortunate to have received such great grace and opportunities from the Lord, and we have been reminded of this fact yet again today so that we will not squander these many opportunities and pathways that the Lord has offered generously, freely and willingly to us. It is now up to us to come to Him and to follow Him, to obey the Lord and His Law, to do what He has commanded us all to do.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, a renowned saint and man of God, a holy priest and theologian whose many works and contributions are still well-known even to this very day. St. Thomas Aquinas was born to a powerful noble and landed family in what is today part of Italy, where he was raised with excellent academic preparations and education, and his family definitely had wanted him to pursue a career in the world as was common for his family at the time. However, the young future St. Thomas Aquinas had a different calling, and he wanted to join religious life as a member of the Dominican Order or the Order of Preachers. This was naturally opposed by his family, who attempted to stop him, and St. Thomas Aquinas even had to endure a year being imprisoned at that time, and he had to face seductions and efforts to dissuade him from pursuing religious life and calling.

But none of these eventually succeeded, and in the end, his family, especially his mother, Theodora, relented and allowed him to secretly escape his detention, after which St. Thomas Aquinas eventually went through the preparation and formation to become a member of the Dominicans. And as he went through his religious journey, he began working on many writings and works that would eventually be famous as theological masterpieces and compulsory reading materials for those studying theology centuries in the future, right up to the present day. While St. Thomas Aquinas was known to be relatively quiet as a person, but his understanding, appreciation and efforts in describing and explaining the Divine were truly legendary and amazing, and he dedicated the rest of his life to these theological pursuits and efforts, while ministering to the people of God around him with great love and dedication.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have discussed and spent time discerning earlier on from the words of the Sacred Scriptures, and also from the discussion on the life, ministry and work of St. Thomas Aquinas, let us all therefore do our best in our own respective lives to live a most faithful, committed life to God, putting God at the centre of our lives, and focusing our attention on glorifying Him through our lives. Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the responsibility, mission and calling to carry out all that the Lord has entrusted to us, through the various opportunities He has provided to us. We should not squander these opportunities, and instead strive our best to commit ourselves with faith, and to remember always the great and most generous love that God has given us, and thus, commit ourselves to love Him with the same vigour and purpose.

May the Lord be with us all and may He empower each one of us to be the faithful bearers of His love, His truth and hope amongst our brethren in this world today. May each and every one of us continue to be strong and courageous in standing up for our faith, doing our best each day and at every moments to be good examplesand inspirations to everyone around us, much as St. Thomas Aquinas and many other saints had inspired us all through their exemplary lives and faith. May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours, all for His greater glory, and may He continue to guide us in our journey in life towards Him, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 27 January 2025 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Angela Merici, Virgin (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Holy Virgins)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of an important core tenet of our Christian faith, that is we all believe in the salvation that has been given and reassured to us through Christ, the Son of God, Who has manifested the perfect love and compassion of God in the flesh, having been made incarnate in the flesh, through the means of His Mother, the Blessed, ever Virgin, Mary, the Mother of God and the Mother of the Saviour of the whole world. And we are reminded through those passages from the Sacred Scriptures of the nature of the Sacrifice and Offering which Christ our Lord, our High Priest had offered on our behalf from the Altar of His Cross, as He willingly laid down His life in exchange for our own lives, so that by His suffering and death, He might bring us all into the assurance of eternal life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle to the Hebrews in which the author of this Epistle, widely considered to be St. Luke the Evangelist, spoke about the sacrifice that the Lord Jesus Christ, Our Saviour has offered at the moment of His Passion, His suffering and death on the Cross, the one and only singular offering and sacrifice needed for the salvation of the whole entire world, for the past, present and the future. And this is something that all of us as Christians believe in, that the Lord has suffered and died, offering His own Most Precious Body and Most Precious Blood as the Lamb of God to atone for our many, innumerable sins and faults, and this perfect sacrifice is the only one that can redeem all of us, once and for all.

The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews directed these words to the Jewish people, both those who have believed in Christ and likely also those who have not believed in Him and were still unconvinced that Jesus was truly the Messiah sent by God. That was why the author spent a lot of time and effort explaining the actions that the Lord Jesus had done, in why He had to suffer and face persecutions, which were actually the fulfilment of everything that the prophets like Isaiah and many others had spoken about Him. At that time, many among the people of God held the popular belief that the Messiah would come to liberate all of them from the hands and dominion by their enemies, like the Romans and others such as the Herodian rulers. Thus, some Jewish people rejected the Lord because of how He has died and was crucified by the Romans.

Then, in addressing the role that the Lord Jesus has taken as the Paschal Lamb, the Lamb of Sacrifice and at the same time also as the High Priest offering that perfect offering of His own Most Precious Body and Blood, by comparing to the practice according to the Law of God which required the people to constantly, repeatedly and regularly offering their sacrifices through the priests to God, the offering of animals and other forms of offerings and sacrifices, it was mentioned that Christ’s sacrifice is the one and only sacrifice that is necessary for all of us, for time immemorial, from the past, to the present and the future, right up to the end of time. It means that the sacrifices and offerings of the blood of animals and other forms of sacrifices at the Temple according to the old Law were no longer necessary.

At the same time, as this has been mentioned, I would also like to address the matter of how some who did not believe in our Christian faith and had been misguided by heretical and false beliefs in the past few centuries right up to this day had accused us Christians in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of offering the sacrifice of Christ again and again in the Holy Mass, which is also better known as the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This is because it is a core tenet of our faith from the beginning of the Church, from the time of the Lord and His Apostles that the Mass as we all know it today, the Eucharist, the pinnacle of our worship of the Divine, is truly the same sacrifice that Our Lord Jesus Christ, Our Saviour, has offered at Calvary at the moment of His Passion, His suffering and death.

However, unlike the false accusations of those who had received the wrong idea and failed to understand the true purpose, significance and meaning of the Holy Mass, the Eucharist and the Lord’s one everlasting sacrifice, offering and Covenant sealed by His Blood and by the breaking of His Body on the Altar of the Cross, all of us as Christians must know and realise that our Christian faith is founded upon this belief that Christ has indeed died once and for all for us, but it is wrong to say that He is being offered again and again, or that the sacrifice is being repeated at every time the Holy Mass is celebrated. That is the result of false ideas, understanding and also even poor catechesis for some among us in the Church who may have believed in the same manner.

This is because just as the Lord’s sacrifice transcends time and space, redeems us all mankind, past, present and future all at once, therefore, just as the Lord Himself has commanded to His disciples ‘Do this in the memory of Me’, and by the authority that He has given to His Church and His Apostles, each and every time we celebrate the Eucharist in the Holy Mass, we are all brought into the mystery of the Lord’s same sacrifice two millennia ago at Calvary, and not a new sacrifice and offering that He makes again for us. It is this same ultimate sacrifice and gift of love that the Lord has presented to all of us through His Son, so that all of us may be saved through Him and everything that He has done out of love for us.

All these disagreements, accusations and disbeliefs, all were caused by none other than the devil himself, who is more than happy to see us all divided and attacking each other, in his constant efforts to lead us astray and to divide us all in the Church of God. This was exactly what the Lord said to the people and to those Pharisees who falsely accused Him of colluding with the evil ones to perform His ministry, works and miracles as we heard in our Gospel passage today. The accusations that He was facing was precisely the works and the efforts of the evil ones, who were no less united in their desire and efforts to see our downfall and destruction, while the people of God bickered and disagreed with one another because of their unbridled ego and pride.

This is a reminder for all of us not to give in to the temptations of pride and other temptations present around us, so that we do not end up falling into the wrong path in life, as those Pharisees and elders of the people had experienced, in their stubbornness to uphold their flawed and mistaken views and ideas thinking that they could not have been wrong in them. They shut the Lord out of their minds and hearts, and hardened them against Him. That is why we need to grow more in our humility and in our ability to trust in the Lord, focusing ourselves on Him and doing everything with the desire to glorify the Lord and not to satisfy our own desires and personal ambitions. As long as we keep this in mind and make the conscious effort to do so, we should be able to remain strong in out faith and commitment to God despite the many trials and challenges we may be facing in our journey.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Angela Merici, a renowned woman and holy servant of God who lived during the Renaissance era Europe, in the region of northern Italy today, where she was orphaned at a young age, and later on she went to commit herself to the Lord, rejecting the pursuits and offers from those men who were mesmerised by her great beauty. She even went to the extent of placing dirt on her face in order to discourage those suitors and all others who came to her seeking her beauty. She henceforth devoted herself to a life of prayer and contemplation, gathering together like-minded women committed to the upbringing, training and education of young women, many of whom at that time did not have proper guidance, upbringing and education, which made them to be often at the mercy of the society and the situation around them.

This was the beginning of what would become known as the Company of Saint Ursula, also more commonly and well known as the Ursuline sisters, which until today are well-known for their dedication to the educatiion of young girls and the proper upbringing of those whom had been placed under their care. All these became possible thanks to the dedication, the great efforts and works that St. Angela Merici had shown throughout her life, which inspired many other women in their desire to follow the Lord and to show the path to many others towards God and His salvation. Therefore, each and every one of us as Christians should also follow in the great examples of this great woman and saint, doing our best at each and every moments in our lives to reject the false glory and pleasures of the world, and instead seek the true joy and glory that can be found in Christ our Lord alone.

May the Lord our most loving God and Father continue to guide us all towards His Presence, and may He continue to strengthen and empower each and every one of us in our everyday living and journey that we may truly be the worthy disciples and followers of God, proclaiming His light and salvation to all the peoples of the whole world, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 26 January 2025 : Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, Sunday of the Word of God (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are reminded through what we have heard from the Sacred Scriptures that we are all recipients of God’s great and wonderful love which He has manifested to us again and again throughout history, in how He has shown us all His faithfulness and commitment to the Covenant that He had made with each and every one of us, who are His beloved people and children. All of us are parts of the same Body of Christ, the Church of God, the people and flock that God had gathered together to be His one united flock and people, to be the ones to share in the glorious inheritance that He has promised to us, revealing to us all His most wonderful compassion and kindness, His ever enduring love that He has made evident through Christ, His Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

In our first reading this Sunday, we have heard from the Book of the prophet Nehemiah in which the account of the moment when the assembly of the Israelites gathered together in the ruins of Jerusalem, led by the prophet and priest Ezra, who was the contemporary of Nehemiah, at the time when the Israelites were allowed to return back to their homeland after many decades in exile in distant lands. The context of the event was that the disobedience of the Israelites, the sins of the predecessors and ancestors of those who were mentioned in today’s first reading passage, had led to the destruction of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the kingdoms of the people of God by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. The people of Israel were scattered in distant lands away from their lands, while foreigners were settled in those lands that God had given to them and their ancestors.

But God has never abandoned or forgotten about His people, as He still loved them all and wanted to restore all of them to grace, despite their many sins, wickedness and disobedience. He did this through the Great King of Persia, Cyrus, who conquered Babylonia and issued an edict of emancipation and liberation to all the Israelites, freeing them from their bondage and allowing them to return once again back to their homeland. Not only that, but he also even authorised the rebuilding of the destroyed cities and towns and especially the Temple of God in Jerusalem, in a great show of compassion and tolerance to the people under his rule. Thus, the Israelites came back to Jerusalem and their homeland, led by the priest Ezra and the king’s scribe, Nehemiah.

It was therefore at that occasion Ezra proclaimed the Law of God and the words of the Scriptures to the assembly of the people of God who had finally returned to their homeland. The people were sorrowful and sad because of the many sins which they and their ancestors had committed against the Lord, which had caused their predicament in the first place, but as we heard, Ezra told them not to be sorrowful or mourn on that day, but instead to rejoice greatly because it was truly a joyful day and moment that the Lord had made, in continuing to provide for His people despite their sins and faults, their disobedience and wickedness, showing them His constant love and compassion, kindness and grace, restoring them to their lands and allowing them to rebuild their lives and cities.

Then, from our second reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians we heard of the words of the Apostle telling the people of God that they all belong to the same Body of Christ, the Church, and each and every one of them truly matters and are important. He exhorted them all using the analogy of the body and its many parts, and how each parts require one another to function properly and well, and therefore each and every one of us as Christians, as God’s people, are truly important in each and every one of our lives, efforts and for who we are, regardless of our status, background or wealth, our position, clout or any other things that we often differentiate ourselves with from each other. We must not think that we are better or more worthy than others, and let that bring about division and disunity among us.

Instead, what St. Paul the Apostle wanted to remind us all is that we have to strive to seek for unity amongst all of us Christians, and to do our best to work with one another, to support each other and the efforts of the Church in its many missions and works for the salvation of souls and for the benefit of everyone around us. We cannot and should not remain idle in our lives, and we have to do our best to work for the greater good of everyone, doing our part so that we may contribute our part to the mission and efforts of the Church. All of us share this mission which the Lord has entrusted to us His Church, and the responsibility is ours to do our part in reaching out to the world and living our lives worthily as Christians, at all times.

We must realise that the works of the Church are not limited just to those who are ordained, or members of the clergy and the religious orders. In fact, many of those who are laypeople have to contribute and be active part in the mission of the Church, as the Lord has given various, diverse gifts and talents, abilities and opportunities to each one of us, and we are entrusted with these different responsibilities, and we have to adapt as best as we can, to do our best in living our lives and carrying out our duties and responsibilities faithfully, be it as a member of the ordained, or those who have given themselves to consecrated and religious life, or those laypeople living in the world in their various capacities.

All of us are called to continue the Lord’s work of love and mercy among His people, which He has repeatedly shown us all as He had done with the Israelites in the past as we heard from the Book of the prophet Nehemiah earlier on. And He has reaffirmed that love in the greatest and ultimate way through His Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Who is the fulfilment of everything that the prophets and the messengers of God had spoken to us, His people, as we heard in our Gospel passage today from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist. The Lord Jesus Himself proclaimed that He was indeed the Messiah or the Saviour long awaited by the people of God, and through Him God would do great things to show His love for all of them.

This Sunday, the Church celebrates together the occasion of the Sunday of the Word of God, reminding ourselves that God Himself, His Divine Word, has become incarnate in the flesh and dwelled among us all, in the person of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. It is a reminder for all of us that God did not just make empty words or promises, but manifested His love, His kindness and compassion towards all of us through His incarnation, the sending of His Son into this world, to be born of His Mother, the Blessed Mary ever Virgin, to show us all the perfect love that He has always had for each and every one of us, and which we should appreciate and realise as we all carry on living our lives as Christians in our world today.

We are all called as Christians to be the faithful and worthy bearers of our faith in the Lord, to be truly missionary, evangelising and active in how we proclaim the truth and Good News of God to everyone around us. We cannot and should not be ignorant of this calling which we have received from the Lord, and we should always be ready and prepared to go forth, revealing the Word of God that we have received and shared to the whole world. It is what we are called to do on this Sunday of the Word of God, to proclaim the salvation of God to all the nations, and to be the shining beacons of His light and truth, helping many of our fellow brothers and sisters in their journey towards the Lord.

Let us all commit ourselves anew from now on, with a new commitment and spirit, to follow the Lord ever more wholeheartedly in all things. Let us show the ever enduring love and mercy, compassion and kindness which God has for us all, His beloved ones, even to the greatest of sinners among us. No one is truly excluded or barred from the love and mercy of God, and we should be the ones to bear witness to His love and kindness. May God be with us always, and may He bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 25 January 2025 : Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church marks the occasion of the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, marking the moment when the once hostile and fervent anti-Christian young Jew and Pharisee named Saul turned over a new leaf completely in his life, becoming then the courageous defender of the Christian faith, changing his name into Paul as the sign of this conversion and embarking into a new life and mission blessed by God. And this day all of us are reminded not to give up hope in the Lord because in Him alone lies our salvation and hope, and He has generously showed us all His love and grace, His persistent care and compassion towards all of us, and His desire to be reunited with us. God has always called us all to holiness, and He provided us with the sure path through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

In our first reading today, we heard the story of the conversion of St. Paul himself, highlighting to us the moment when as mentioned, Saul the Pharisee encountered the Lord and was converted to the true faith. Up to that moment Saul had always been a very energetic and fanatical Pharisee who had been very active in persecuting the early Christians, arresting many of them throughout Jerusalem, Judea and other regions, and he was also present at the time of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the very first martyr of the Church. Essentially he was a great enemy of the Church and the early Christian believers. And that mistaken zeal was what drove the young Saul to seek permission from the Jewish leaders to go to Damascus to continue rooting out the early Christians and persecuting them for their faith in the Lord.

But as we all know, God had a very different plan for Saul. As we heard from the account from the Acts of the Apostles, Saul had an encounter with the Lord Jesus Himself Who appeared to Him on the way to Damascus, and Who revealed Himself and His truth to the misguided and overzealous young man. It was thus the beginning of the conversion journey of Saul, who met Ananias, one of the Lord’s disciples who was in Damascus, and it was Ananias who baptised Saul and gave him the first teachings and truth of the Christian beliefs, opening the eyes of Saul to what the truth about Jesus Christ, the Saviour has brought into this world, which he and many other Pharisees, clouded by pride, greed and ego, and by falsehoods, refused to believe and ended up persecuting.

Saul therefore completely changed his ways, so much so that many people were astonished by the change, both those Pharisees who once persecuted Christians with him and also the persecuted Christians themselves. But Saul continued to grow in wisdom and power of the Lord through the Holy Spirit, and he took upon the new name of Paul to signify this conversion and change, much as how in the Scriptures, people had their names change to indicate significant events in their lives. From a great enemy and persecutor of Christians, St. Paul became the great champion of the Christian faith, dedicating and committing himself to the cause of the Lord, proclaiming the truth of God faithfully wherever he went, labouring hard for the Lord’s sake and enduring a lot of hardships and persecutions that he himself once inflicted upon the Christians.

The story of the conversion of St. Paul the Apostle is truly a very amazing story of hope and change which all of us should be inspired by. The great examples shown by St. Paul the Apostle and his dedication to the Lord after having committed great mistakes and harm to the Church earlier in his life is one of the story of hope reminding us that there is no one excluded by the Lord and that each and every one of have the same opportunity and chance which God Himself has provided most generously to us because He wants us all to be saved and redeemed through Him, and no longer be lost because of our sins and disobedience against Him. If even a great sinner and someone who had once committed grievous sins and acts that endangered many of the early Christians like St. Paul could become a great servant of God and exemplary follower of the Lord, then who we are to say that we cannot do the same as well?

In our Gospel passage today from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples in which He commanded all of them to go forth and spread throughout the world, proclaiming His Good News and salvation, all of which He has promised to us through the same Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all. This commissioning took place after the Lord has suffered and died on His Cross, and then risen gloriously from death. It is the mission which the Lord has entrusted to all of us as His disciples, to be the bearers of the Good News of His triumphant victory over sin and death, over the chains of evil and the dominion of Satan, all those things that had prevented us from coming towards the Lord and His salvation, His grace and love.

Each and every one of us have been given such great grace from God and we should indeed be thankful for everything that He had done for us. He has loved us so dearly and patiently even when we have often rebelled against Him and disobeyed Him, resolving to forgive us all and continuing to open the path of redemption to all of us. That was what St. Paul had accepted, the generous offer of mercy and forgiveness, and he showed us all that all saints were sinners just like us too, but what matters is that they all changed their ways and abandoned their past sins, corruptions and all the things which had kept them from truly being able to live their lives faithfully as God’s holy servants and people. They cast aside the temptations and false pleasures of the world, putting their faith and trust fully in God, becoming great role models and inspirations for us to follow.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we willing and able to commit ourselves henceforth to the Lord like how St. Paul and many other saints had done? Are we willing and able to reject the temptations of the evil one, all the pleasures and allures of worldly glory, ambition, corruptions and all the things that often distract us from the right path towards the Lord? God has given us all the freedom to choose our path in life, and we need to make the conscious effort to firmly reject all those that can bring us away into the path towards our downfall and destruction. This is why we should always put the Lord at the centre of everything that we believe in, and make Him to be the reason and the focus of everything that we say and do. We should not allow anything to keep us away from God and His truth, His love and Presence. Every one of us as sinners still have path path forward, and that is through God’s love, compassion and mercy.

Let us all continue to live our lives to the fullest in faith, committing ourselves each and every moments to walk ever down this path that God has shown us, and be the good and worthy disciples and followers of the Lord, the shining beacons of His truth, His Good News and love in this world. May the Lord be with us all and may He continue to help and guide us so that we may continue to be led towards Him and that we will not lose our paths and bearings in life, continuing to trust in God’s love and mercy, now and always, ever proclaiming that love and mercy to the whole world. Amen.

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Friday, 24 January 2025 : 2nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the calling that each and every one of us have as Christians, that is as those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Lord, Saviour and King, that we must always proclaim Him in all of our words, actions and deeds, in every interactions that we have with our fellow brothers and sisters around us. Each and every one of us as the members of the Church of God are partakers of the Covenant which God has made with us all through His Son, and we are the ones to be His witnesses and missionaries to the people of every nations, to all those whom we encounter in our lives each day. We are all called to be the role models and inspirations for one another in faith.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Epistle to the Hebrews, we continue to hear again the focus and emphasis by the author of this Epistle on the role that Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Mediator of the New Covenant between God and mankind had taken in the fulfilment of everything that God has promised to us. The author emphasised in the parts of the Epistle that we heard today on the New and Eternal Covenant which God has made with His people, mediated by none other than His own Beloved Son, sent into the world to be the Mediator of this New Covenant. Through Christ, our Lord and Saviour, God sealed and established this firm and everlasting promise, and guaranteed for all those who have faithfully committed themselves to His path, the fullness of His grace, love and blessings.

This Covenant is one that surpasses all the other prior covenants and contracts between God and His people. While the previous covenants had been broken and had to be constantly renewed because of the disobedience of God’s people, symbolised and shown by the frequent regular offerings of sin offerings and sacrifices at the Temple of God, the One, True and Eternal Covenant which the Lord has brought upon us and sealed with none other than His own Precious Blood, through His Passion, His suffering and death on the Cross, by which He has established and made firm this Covenant, which is not just merely an empty promise or assurance without fulfilment. God Himself showed His faithfulness through action, and the Cross of Christ, with our Lord shown hanging on it, is a constant reminder of the price that our Lord has paid for us.

This is something which the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews wanted to highlight to the Jewish community, many of whom have not yet believed in the Lord and refused to listen to His truth, or doubt the authenticity of His teachings and works, as through Christ, there is no more need for anymore sacrifices and offerings, all which have been replaced by the one sacrifice that Christ has made on our behalf, to atone for all the multitudes of our many and innumerable sins and faults, once and for all. This was also an explanation of the sufferings which the Lord had endured on His Cross, which to those who did not understand the significance, might seem like a defeat or humiliation. On the contrary, it was through this suffering and death that the Lord has established His New and Eternal Covenant.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist in which the account of the Lord calling His disciples, those twelve principal followers He had chosen, was highlighted to us. Through these disciples, the Lord extended His works and ministry, sending them all out on missions to proclaim His Good News, to heal the sick and to carry out the works that He Himself wanted to do among us. And this is also a reminder for all of us that as Christians, we are all also expected to be the ones to deliver this truth and Good News to everyone around us. Through us and our faithful witnesses, our testimony of faith we may lead more and more people into this Covenant that God has made with us all, and which He has offered freely and generously by His love.

Each and every one of us as Christians must always be active in proclaiming the Good News of God, not only through words but also through actions. It means that in each and every moments of our lives, even in the smallest of things that we say and do, and even in the seemingly least significant things, we should always strive to live worthily as those who believe in the Lord, to be exemplary in all of our actions and interactions with one another. God has indeed made His everlasting Covenant with us, but many still remain unaware of this Covenant and the love that God has for us all. And it is truly up to us all as Christians, as the disciples and followers of the Lord to be the ones to proclaim this truth and salvation to all.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Francis de Sales, one of the renowned saints of the Church, a great and holy bishop who was dedicated in his mission and service to God and to the people of God. He was someone who was truly missionary in his life, works and ministry, approaching others with gentleness and love, and not with coercion and force. He was involved deeply in the efforts of Counter-Reformation where his efforts and hard work brought back many thousands, tens of thousands and more back to the true faith in God. He did not do so by being forceful or haughty and assertive, but rather through genuine discussion, journeying with one another and engaging in dialogue. And even with these, he still faced a lot of struggles and opposition from those who refused to listen to him and the truth of God.

St. Francis de Sales ministered to the people of God throughout the areas affected by the Protestant reformation, and eventually became the Bishop of Geneva in what is today Switzerland, which at that time was greatly affected by the reformation. He continued to minister to the faithful and also to everyone who refused to believe in the Catholic truth and faith. At the same time he continued to inspire many through his preaching and great personal holiness and piety. He was well-known for his words, ‘Those who preached with love, preached effectively’, showing great love and care for everyone whom he encountered throughout his missions and works, all the way to the end of his life after many years being spent in ministry to the people of God and glorifying God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore do our best to follow the good examples showed to us by St. Francis de Sales and ultimately, by the Lord Himself. Through their love and compassionate care, they have become great inspiration and role model for all of us as Christians, in how we all should devote ourselves to the Lord and in how we should act in doing God’s will at all times. Let us all as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, be filled with the courage and strong desire to love the Lord and to commit ourselves to Him, to be the shining beacons of God’s love, truth and Good News to everyone around us. May God bless each one of us, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 23 January 2025 : 2nd Week of Ordinary Time, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we heard from our Scripture passages today, today as we all heard again from the readings of the Sacred Scriptures and we continue on the discourse about the identity of Jesus Christ as the High Priest of all and the Son of God, all the miracles and wonders that He has performed among the people, we are all reminded about Who it is that we believe in, in our faith and belief as Christians so that we all may know how we may share about Him to all others whom we encounter in our respective daily lives. If we do not even know the Lord, or understand His role and mission in what He had done for our sake, then how can we be effective and good missionaries and evangelisers in our world today?

In our first reading today, we continue to hear from the Epistle to the Hebrews the discourse about the truth and identity of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world and the Messiah which the Jewish people had long awaited for. If yesterday we heard the author speaking about Melchizedek and his connections and associations to Christ, then today we again explore the role of Jesus Christ our Lord as our One, True and Eternal High Priest, as the One through Whom all of us have received the assurance of salvation because He has broken the chains and dominion of sin and death that once had control over all of us. This was particularly directed to the Jewish people in order to explain to them why there was no more need for them to offer sacrifices anymore as they had been mandated by the Law.

The author explained that all the sacrifices which the people had offered up to that time were all temporary and reflections of the one true Sacrifice and Offering which the Lord Jesus, as the High Priest offered once and for all for everyone. It was also highlighted how the High Priest and the other priests had to offer sacrifices in atonement for their own sins first before offering the sacrifice for the people, and they also offered the sacrifices and blood of lambs, goats and others that could not atone for the multitudes of sins of so many. And in contrast, Jesus Christ, the One, True and Eternal High Priest had no need to offer sacrifices for Himself because He Himself is without any sin or blemish, perfect in all things beyond comparison.

More importantly, what He offered was none other than His own Self, His own Most Precious Body and Blood as the Son of God and Son of Man, as well as the Paschal Lamb of sacrifice, offered as the only worthy offering worth all of the multitudes of the innumerable sins, faults and mistakes of all mankind from the very beginning of time, from the time of Adam and Eve right up to the very end of time. His incarnation into this world made possible the perfection of God and His Divinity to transcend our human nature and make Himself that perfect offering and sacrifice on our behalf. And the Lord Jesus truly did suffer most grievously for our sake, as He willingly bore the great and unimaginable weight of the Cross upon His shoulder, and as the scourges were brought upon Him, nails piercing through His Body, broken and His Blood outpoured for us.

As the perfect and most unblemished sacrifice, Our Lord as the Lamb of God offered for us all His own Most Precious Body and Blood for our salvation, and He did it once and for all on Calvary, on His Cross, which is the Altar of His Sacrifice. And by His great grace, He has also extended this same Sacrifice to each and every one of us through the authority and power that He has given to His Church through His disciples. It is one of the core tenets of our Christian faith that we believe in the Real Presence of the Lord in the Eucharist, the dogma on Transubstantiation. What we all believe is that during each and every celebrations of the Holy Mass, more appropriately known as the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the same Sacrifice of Our Lord at Calvary, our One, True and Eternal High Priest has been brought to us, transcending time and space.

Each and every one of our priests have all received this same power and authority, that at the moment of the Consecration of the bread and wine, those are turned completely and utterly into the substance and essence of the Lord, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world. That is what we all believe in, and we truly believe in the Lord our God Who has manifested Himself in the flesh, so that He could be with us, making Himself approachable and reachable by us, no longer separated by the veil and chasm of sin and death. This is what we have heard in our Gospel passage today as well, as we heard how the Lord has gone among His people, ministering to them, healing their sick and casting out evil spirits from those who have been afflicted, among other things that He had done.

All these showed us once again of the most generous and wonderful love of God made clear and tangible for us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour. As Christians, it is therefore very important that we must always be grateful of everything that God has done for us, in all the sufferings and the sacrifices He had made for our sake. It is sad to know that quite a few Christians do not truly recognise and appreciate the Lord for what He had done for us, when as our Gospel passage today mentioned, that even evil spirits proclaimed Him as the Holy One of God. Have we made the Lord to be the very centre and focus of our lives? Or have we instead allowed the many temptations around us, our many pursuits for power and glory to distract us away from God and His salvation?

Let us all remind ourselves of these things as we continue to move forward in life, making good use of the time and opportunities which have been presented to us. Let us no longer take God’s love for granted, but do our best from now on to do His will wholeheartedly, to love Him with all of our might and strength from now on, as we all should do. May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to bestow His blessings and love on us, so that we may also be truly loving in all of our words, actions and deeds. Amen.