Weekday Mass

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Sunday, 12 October 2025 : Twenty-Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together to listen to the words of the Sacred Scripture, we are reminded that each and every one of us have been given such great gifts and opportunities by the Lord, Who has always been very compassionate, patient and kind towards us, in showing us ever more loving concern and in His desire to heal us all from our troubles and faults. That is why we should really appreciate that the Lord has done for us with such great love, persistence and patience, and not take all these for granted because if we allow ourselves to remain distant and separated from Him, then in the end, it is only us that will regret having disobeyed Him and refusing to listen to all the things that He has constantly tried to show us.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Second Book of Kings of Israel and Judah in which the story of Naaman the Syrian and the prophet Elisha was told to us, where this Naaman was the famous general of the Aramaeans, a Syrian kingdom that was bordering the kingdom of Israel. He came to the land of Israel when he heard of the famous deeds of the prophet Elisha and his miracles, through which he hoped to be healed from his problem of leprosy. Naaman went to seek Elisha and eventually found him, and before what was depicted in today’s passage, the prophet Elisha told Naaman to go and immerse himself seven times in the River Jordan, and initially Naaman felt insulted at being asked to do such a trivial task.

He further argued and tried to justify himself by saying that there were better and superior rivers in his own homeland in Aram and Damascus, as compared to the River Jordan in Israel. But his servant was quick to remind him that he should just obey and listen to the words of the Lord spoken through the prophet Elisha if he wanted to be cured of his condition. It was Naaman’s pride and ego which initially prevented him from doing what was necessary in order to find healing and while he wanted to be healed, he initially could not do so because he kept on refusing to follow the Lord and His commands. But eventually he relented and humbled himself, doing exactly as what he had been asked to do, and as a result, he was healed from his leprosy.

We heard how Naaman thanked the prophet Elisha greatly and appreciated everything that God had done to him through the prophet. However, when the prophet Elisha was offered with generous gifts from Naaman, who was full of praise and thanksgiving to God, the former refused to accept those gifts, as the prophet humbly highlighted that he was merely following God’s will and not doing all the things for his own personal gain and benefit. And again we can see here the importance of humility and obedience in our faith, and hence, we need to reflect upon what we have heard today from this passage from the Book of Kings, reminding us that at all times we should always be ready to listen to God speaking to us in various ways, even through those who disagreed with us.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to his protege, St. Timothy in which the Apostle spoke of the matter of what the true Christian faith is all about, and how everything that St. Paul himself had endured and encountered throughout his ministry and works, all of them were done for the greater glory of God, and in full trust of everything that God had called on him and the other disciples and missionaries of Christ to do. Therefore, St. Paul wanted to remind and strengthen his protege, St. Timothy and the other early Christians, that they should not be afraid to continue to do their best for the greater glory of God. They should remember that even as they suffer, they were suffering for the sake of the Lord, and they were never truly alone in their journey and in their struggles.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus encountered ten lepers who were cast out from their community, being forced to wander off in the wilderness as prescribed by the Law of Moses. According to that Law, the lepers were unclean and they could not return to the community until their leprosy had been cured. This definition of leprosy first of all may differ from what we commonly know as leprosy today, as it covered a rather broad variety of skin diseases and infections. But at that time, as we heard, when the ten lepers came to seek the Lord and sought His miraculous healing even from a distance, knowing that if they came to Him they would make Him and His disciples unclean, He did not keep Himself away from them, but approached them and showed them His mercy and love.

He told them all to go and see a priest as prescribed by the Law, even though they had not by then been physically healed from their leprosy. Yet, they chose to have faith in the Lord and trusted in Him, even when He did not perform grand gestures and miraculous powers before them, choosing to trust in God and go forth on their journey back to the priest as asked. They showed obedience and faith, and as a result, as we heard, they were all healed from their leprosy, and they realised it afterwards that they had been made whole again. Yet, none of them except for one among them, a Samaritan, who then went back all the way to the Lord again to thank Him for everything that He had done for their sake. This showed the Samaritan’s great character and virtue, not only that he had obedience and faith in him, but he was also grateful for the Lord’s goodness.

This leprosy is also a representation of an even greater ‘leprosy’ that often afflicts us, which is something that no earthly doctors and means can cure. This leprosy refers to sin, which is often likened to the leprosy that affects us even to the depths of our souls, corrupting and affecting our whole and entire beings. But with God’s help, and if we put our faith and trust in Him, then by His power, grace and forgiveness, we can indeed be healed and made whole again after the struggles that we have with sin. While sin and the temptations to sin against God are always ever around us, but we must put our faith and trust in God, knowing that it is in Him alone that we will be able to overcome the domination of sin and evil, and their hold on us.

Through what we have heard in this Gospel passage this Sunday, and from the other readings that we have discussed and reflected about, we are reminded that each and every one of us as Christians need to have a greater trust and faith in the Lord, and strive our best to do our part, in each and every moments of our lives such that we may indeed truly be obedient in all things to the Lord, ever righteous and virtuous in all that we say and do. Let us all be like the Samaritan leper, who obeyed the Lord and was faithful to Him, and yet at the same time, also know when to give thanks and praise to God when it is due. Let us all be good role models and examples for one another, and strive to be freed from the leprosy of our souls, that is our sins. May God be with us always, and may He continue to strengthen each and every one of us in our every good efforts and endeavours. Amen.

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Saturday, 11 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. John XXIII, Pope (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Popes)

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 to follow the Lord faithfully and wholeheartedly, resisting the temptations to follow all the wickedness and the vile things in this world, all of which we are surrounded by, which may prevent us from truly being able to serve God faithfully as we all should have. As Christians, those whom God has called and considered to be His own beloved people, His chosen ones, each one of us ought to be good role models and examples for everyone whom we encounter in life such that we may help lead each one of them ever closer to God as we should have done. This is what we are all called to do as Christians, to embrace our calling to be good inspirations in faith to all around us.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Joel, we heard of the words of the Lord presented to His people in the kingdom of Judah, to whom the prophet Joel had been sent to, calling on all of them to repent and turn away from their sins, which is much of what the prophet Joel had been sent for. Back then, the people of the kingdom of Judah had long erred in their ways and in disobeying God to the point that they had forgotten and ignored God’s Law and commandments, much like their neighbours in the northern kingdom of Israel. As a result, they faced a lot of hardships and troubles, having to endure defeats, conquests and humiliations, and Judah and Jerusalem themselves would be destroyed in the end. Another tradition and consensus placed Joel’s ministry after the destruction of Judah and the return of the people back to their homeland.

Nonetheless, the essence of what Joel presented to the people of God remained true after all, that they all ought to keep themselves away from their wicked ways and the temptations of the evils and desires of this world. The Lord is indeed so kind, loving and merciful, that in His great compassion He still cared for all those people who had sinned against Him and hardened their hearts against  Him that He still reassured them of His love and providence, and how He would once again bless them all, allowing them to rebuild and reestablish their lives and livelihood again. Indeed, if Joel’s ministry took place during the years after the Babylonian exile period, it would serve as a confirmation of everything which God has spoken repeatedly and promised through His many earlier prophets.

Then, from our relatively short Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we are reminded that obeying God, doing His will and walking in the path of His Law and commandments is what we have been called to do as those who believe in Him. This is an important reminder for all of us that amidst our very busy daily schedules, works and everything that we are often preoccupied with, we must never forget to anchor ourselves in the Lord and to remain firmly trusting in Him, putting God ever at the centre of our lives and in everything we do. This is what we are reminded of today, along with what we have heard earlier from the prophet Joel, of the need for all of us to continue to live our lives each day ever centred on God in all of our actions and activities.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of Pope St. John XXIII, one of the more recent Popes who have lived and reigned as the Pope, Supreme Pontiff and Vicar of Christ in the middle of the twentieth century, leading the Church through rapidly changing and turbulent times, and was especially well-known for his contributions in convoking the Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, also known as the Vatican II Council. Through his examples, Pope St. John XXIII should indeed be a great role model and inspiration for all of us in how we all should live our lives as true and genuine Christians, in all the things that we say and do in life. He was born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli in a poor family of Bergamo in northern part of Italy today. Despite having been born into a poor family, the young Angelo Roncalli was brought up well in the faith by his devout parents.

Eventually the young future Pope St. John XXIII entered the seminary and after a period in formation, was ordained as a priest, in which he then experienced firsthand the challenges of the people and the workers then, under the tutelage of his mentor, Bishop Giocomo Radini-Tedeschi, the then Bishop of Bergamo, who was a champion of the rights of the workers at the time, and impacted the young Angelo Roncalli greatly, as he was Bishop Radini-Tedeschi’s secretary then, until the latter passed away. Then, the young priest experienced the ministry among the trenches and warfare during the First World War before being appointed as the Apostolic Delegate and representative of the Pope to Bulgaria, and ordained as a bishop in the years following the war.

The experiences of the earlier days Pope St. John XXIII in his years as Apostolic Nuncio to Bulgaria, and then Greece and Turkey, and finally Apostolic Nuncio to France greatly expanded his horizons and views of the world, its divergent and great variety of peoples and groups, and in his ability to negotiate and work with various parties and collaborators of the works of faith. In Bulgaria, he was instrumental in making bridges and connections with the separated brethren from the Orthodox Church, while during his tenure in France, he helped to repair the often tense relationship between the Church and the state. As Patriarch of Venice for several years, he would continue to do what he has always passionately and courageously done since his youth and earlier days as a priest, that is dedicating himself to his flock and all those who had been entrusted to him.

As Pope, Pope St. John XXIII devoted himself to many great works and efforts, in leading a reform to the Church, by convoking and announcing the Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican as mentioned, helping to bring the Church, its practices and beliefs more up-to-date in responding to the challenges and the difficulties faced by the faithful due to the rapidly changing world and conditions. He was also instrumental in his efforts to bring about peace between the feuding superpowers in the Cold War, namely the United States of America and the Soviet Union, particularly during the intense crisis in Cuba that almost led the world to nuclear war and total destruction, publishing his Papal Encyclical, Pacem in Terris or ‘Peace on Earth’, calling upon peace between peoples and nations. To the very end of his life, Pope St. John XXIII continued to labour greatly for the Lord’s sake.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have discussed earlier in the words of the Scriptures, and in the reminders we have received where we need to put our faith and trust in the Lord, and obey His will, and as we have reflected upon the good examples and inspirations which Pope St. John XXIII had done in his life and ministry, let us all therefore be inspired to follow the good examples of this holy man of God, and strive to do our best to be the shining beacons of God’s Light in our own community, among our fellow family members, friends and circles, and even to all those whom we encounter in each and every moments of our lives, in even the smallest things we say and do, and in our every interactions with those whom we meet in life.

May God be with us always, and may He continue to strengthen each and every one of us as Christians, to be ever committed and obedient to God’s will, striving to make best use of everything which God has entrusted to us, to be His instruments that can make this whole world a better place once again, in God’s grace. May God bless our every good efforts, works and endeavours, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Friday, 10 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that each and every one of us should not be divided against each other, be in strife against our fellow brothers and sisters because of our pride and ego, which can prevent us from truly working with each other in the manner that God has wanted us to do. Each and every one of us as Christians need to put our faith and trust in the Lord at all times, and remind ourselves to be ever willing to listen to the words of those whom God may have sent into our path to remind and strengthen us in faith. We must always be humble in all things and we should not allow ego and pride to prevent us from listening to the Lord speaking to us especially through those who are around us.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Joel, we heard of the words of the Lord to His people, the people of Israel and their descendants in the land of Judah and beyond. According to Scriptural evidence and other historical perspectives, the prophet Joel had been sent to the people of Judah and the descendants of the Israelites either before the years of their exile in Babylon, or a century or so afterwards. Regardless of the exact timing of the prophet Joel’s ministry, what is truly important is that through the prophet Joel, the Lord reminded His people of the need for them to turn once again towards Him with faith and to repent from their many sins, and also His reassurances to them that He would always be with them, and He would bless them again generously as He had always done.

Through what we have heard from the Book of the prophet Joel today, we heard the moment when Israel was restored once again to grace, after they had faced all the humiliations of their years in exile and in dishonour, losing their own homeland and having their cities and the Temple that King Solomon had once built for the Lord. A new Temple was indeed established and rebuilt, and everything were restored once again to good order just as before. The Lord had promised His people that He would always be with them even through their hardest and darkest moments, and He did just that, fulfilling everything that He had promised to them. And it is in all of these that we should continue to trust in the Lord and to put our faith and hope in Him, even through our most difficult and challenging moments in life.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the accusation that some among the people, made against Jesus, which according to historical evidence and Scriptural context, likely originated from among the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, many of whom often followed the Lord and made critical comments against Him throughout those works and ministries. And in this particular occasion, the Lord was accused by those people of having colluded with the prince of demons named Beelzebul in His performance of exorcism among the people that brought those who had been possessed by evil spirits. The Lord showed His power and authority, casting out all those evil and wicked spirits, truly the clear sign that He was indeed the promised Messiah or Saviour from God.

However, the religious and intellectual elites of the community of the people of God, especially the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law among them had a rather rigid and elitist attitudes pertaining to this matter, and they often disagreed and even quarrelled with the Lord, debating with Him on His different way of practicing the faith, and in their disagreements, this often led to the rather bitter debates between them and the Lord, and culminating in this kind of very unkind accusation that they had made against the Lord, alleging falsely before the others that the Lord had colluded with the prince of demons in doing His miracles and signs, whereas the evidences clearly pointed out that the Lord had done it by His own power, the power of God Himself manifested in His Incarnate Son, and which the prophets themselves had spoken about.

The irony is such that the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were the ones who should be more knowledgeable about the Lord’s coming, of the miracles and signs that He would be performing before the people. Yet, it was their own pride and ego that became their own undoing, as their ego made them to harden their hearts and minds against the Lord, Who had always patiently tried to reach out to them, to dialogue with them and to reveal to them the same truth that He has delivered to His people. They thought that they were superior to others around them, better and more worthy of God’s grace and salvation, even to the point of looking down on and despising those whom they deemed to be sinners and unworthy of God, like the tax collectors and prostitutes.

And before we are quick to point the fingers to blame the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law for being such stubborn and troublesome obstacles in the Lord’s works and ministry, let us all examine our own attitudes and way of life ourselves first, and let us all see if our own words, actions and deeds have also been just like those Pharisees and any others who have hardened their hearts and minds against the Lord. Have we allowed our pride and ego, our hubris and sense of self-importance to close the doors of our hearts and minds against God, and against all those through whom God is trying to speak to us and reach out to us? This is something that we ought to carefully reflect and consider so that we do not end up doing actions that cause harm to the unity of the Church and also to the salvation of souls.

Throughout history, there had been lots of instances where people ended up losing their faith in God and leaving the Church altogether because of the unbecoming and irresponsible attitudes and actions of those within the Church. And this happened even to those who are closest to us, those whom we thought would have kept us strong in the faith, and yet, because of pride and ego, disagreements and stubbornness, we ended up causing rifts and divisions to exist within the Church and among the faithful people of God. Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all do our best to overcome our differences and learn to work together, being ever reminded that none of us are perfect or more worthy than others. May the Lord continue to guide each and every one of us in our mission so that we may continue to journey faithfully and courageously towards Him in each and every moments in our lives. Amen.

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Thursday, 9 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that we need to continue to believe and trust in the Lord our God, in everything that we do in our lives and in our every actions. We should always strive to be righteous and to seek the Lord in all things, ever remembering that God is truly most generous in all that He has intended for us. We should not easily lose faith in the Lord especially when difficulties and trials may come our way, and we have to be strong and steadfast in everything that we do in each and every moments of our lives. We should always remember that God is ever present with us, and He is never far especially when we are facing lots of trials and difficulties in life.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Malachi, we heard of the words of the Lord to His people regarding the matter of being truly obedient to God and trusting in Him, and how the righteous, just and worthy will be vindicated and strengthened in the end. Those who trust in the Lord and have been tested in their faith in Him will surely be blessed and they will enjoy the fullness of God’s Providence, everything that He had intended for them and desired to provide for them. Meanwhile, those who are wicked and unworthy, those who continue to act without concern and care for others, those who are selfish and seeking only to satisfy their own greed and desires, all of them shall face what they deserved, the punishments befitting their sins and wickedness.

We are all reminded therefore that God is never blind or unaware of our struggles and difficulties, and He truly knows us all very well, and He has always sought to find us wherever we are, and when we are lost to Him, He has always done His best, reaching out to us so that we may be found again and may be reunited with Him once again. He reminded us all to be virtuous, good and worthy in all things so that we may truly be good role models and examples in our Christian faith. Each and every one of us as God’s holy and beloved people ought to carry on living our lives in the manner that is inspirational and in the manner that is truly genuine and faithful. Otherwise, if we are not truly faithful to God, how can we lead others closer to God? Worse still, we may cause scandal for our faith and besmirch the Lord’s Holy Name if our actions are contrary to what the Lord has shown and taught us to do.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples, reminding each and every one of them that God is indeed our loving Father, and He will always be by our side, protecting us and providing for us for whatever we may need, at all times. And this is the faith that we should have in Him, trusting in God and His Providence. If we ask of Him, our loving Father will surely provide for us in the best manner that He knows of our needs, and we will just have to trust in His Providence and guidance. We are reminded of God’s great love, His ever generous Heart, from which overflows His generosity, His kindness and compassion towards us.

And this is why we should never take God’s love for granted, and do our very best in our own respective lives such that we may truly put our faith and trust in Him, and never waver even in the hardest struggles that we may encounter in life because we know that He is always ever present in our midst, journeying with us and guiding us through those difficult moments. If we trust in God and put our faith in Him, in our Heavenly Father Who is always ever concerned about us, His beloved children, and if we ask Him and seek Him with sincere hearts and minds, then surely in His good time, God will grant us whatever we need, and whatever we have asked of Him. It may not be exactly what we wanted, but He will surely grant us all those according to His will.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as that of St. John Leonardi, a devout man of God and priest, the founder of the Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. First of all, St. Denis was the Bishop of Paris during the middle of the third century, in which he was remembered for his most miraculous martyrdom among with many others, who were oppressed and martyred during the intense persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Decius. St. Denis was arrested and tortured after his efforts in converting many pagans made many pagan priests and officials to be afraid of them, and he and others were brought to a hill where they were executed, with St. Denis being beheaded. However, miraculously, St. Denis still continued to preach while his head had been severed from his body, walking for a few miles before he finally died at the site where a great Basilica in his honour stands now. Not few were converted to the faith by this miraculous occasion.

St. John Leonardi meanwhile was a priest in what is now Italy, who answered God’s call for him to be a priest, and to serve among the people of God, ministering to their spiritual needs, while spreading the devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the popular Forty Hours devotion, which were instrumental in checking the growth of the heresy of Protestant reformation at that time. He helped spreading the reforms of the Council of Trent, and established the aforementioned Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. He did not have it easy as he encountered opposition and challenges from those who were politically motivated back then in opposing the establishment of the new religious order, known well as the Lucca Fathers. Nevertheless, St. John Leonardi continued to do his best in doing God’s work among His people.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect upon these words of the Scriptures we have just discussed earlier, and also the examples of faith and courage that St. Denis and his companions, as well as St. John Leonardi, in all that they have done, putting their faith and trust in God in everything that they do, in committing themselves in their own unique ways to serve the Lord faithfully at all times. Let us all continue to grow ever stronger in faith and do our very best so that by our good examples and actions, we may inspire and touch the lives of so many others around us. May God be with us and may He continue to bless our every good works and endeavours, in our every good works and contributions, at all times. Amen.

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Wednesday, 8 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the great love and compassion that God our most loving Father and Creator has shown to each and every one of us, all without exception, even to the greatest and most obstinate of sinners. God has always been generous with His mercy and forgiveness, and with all that He has prepared for us, His beloved children and people. God wants us all to come to Him and be forgiven from all the faults and mistakes that had become barriers and obstacles in our paths towards Him. And just as the Lord never gave up on us, but ever constantly reaching our to us and giving us chances one after another, we too should always put our trust and hope in God at all times.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Jonah, we heard of how Jonah had gone to the city of Nineveh as he had been directed by God, and how he did as he had been asked by the Lord in proclaiming the upcoming downfall and destruction of Nineveh because of the great wickedness which they had committed, all the vile things that the Assyrians carried out throughout their often violent bloodshed and all the destruction which they had brought upon the many nations they attacked and conquered in their pursuit of power and glory. But when the people of Nineveh heard of the judgment and warnings that the Lord presented to them, the whole people of Nineveh, from their king to the lowest among the peasants, all repented their sins, showing publicly their repentance by wearing sackcloth.

And it was for this public and genuine repentance that the Lord showed His generous mercy and compassion on the people of Nineveh, sparing them the destruction that He had wanted to bring upon them. But as we heard from the passage today, Jonah was unhappy with the Lord’s actions, and he was angry and displeased likely because he went all the way to Nineveh after having tried to flee from the Lord and ignore the Lord’s calling and mission, only for his mission to be seemingly invalidated and his efforts wasted, from his perspective, when the Lord forgave the people of Nineveh from their sins and did not carry out what He had warned and declared to them through Jonah. Therefore, Jonah was angered because in his ego and pride, he likely thought that he deserved to see the destruction of Nineveh and its people just as he had announced it.

Yet, the Lord patiently explained to Jonah and told him how He truly cared for everyone, to even the least of the people of Nineveh, and even to the worst offenders and sinners. He considered everyone to be His beloved children, without any exception, and that included even the people of Nineveh themselves. When Jonah grumbled and complained when a sycamore tree that shaded him from the heat died, the Lord therefore referred to that example and showed how if Jonah cared so much about the life of a sycamore tree, then all the more God is ever more concerned about the lives of all of His children, no matter who they are or how sinful they have been. He wants all of them to be saved and reconciled with Him.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus taught His disciples how to pray to their Heavenly Father, in the prayer that I am sure all of us know well, that is the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer, also known as the Pater Noster or Our Father, is the prayer that the Lord Himself has prayed and taught us all how to pray as the essence of the perfect prayer, upon which our prayers ought to be modelled after. For in the Lord’s Prayer is contained all that is the essence of our prayer, which is truly our communication with God. In that prayer is contained the essence of thanksgiving, contrition, adoration and supplication to God.

Each one of these aspects are important as they made up our genuine and living relationship with God, which should indeed be characterised by regular and dynamic communication with God through prayer. Prayer is truly central to our lives and actions as Christians, and without prayer we cannot truly be connected to God, or know His will and desire for us all. If we are true Christians then we will always make the conscious effort to keep in touch with the Lord actively and regularly just in the same manner that we are constantly connected to our family members and to our loved ones, even friends and those others whom we care for. That is why we should imitate the examples set by our Lord Himself, in how He constantly spent time in quiet prayer with His Father in Heaven.

But too many of us spent time praying in the wrong way, filling our prayers with demands, requests and thinking that by our prayers we can get what we want and that God will be bent to our wants and desires. That is not what a prayer is truly about. Yes, the Lord knows what we seek and He also genuinely listens to us whenever we ask of HIm. As our loving Father, He certainly cares about us and He wants the best for us. And the Lord Jesus Himself also said in another occasion, ‘Ask and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened for you.’ The Lord, our Heavenly Father is truly loving and generous with us, and if only we develop a strong and genuine relationship with Him through constant prayer, that we will be able to truly grow closer to Him and be more faithful and worthy of Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we have reflected from the messages of the Sacred Scriptures, and as we have discussed through our reflection today, let us all therefore have and develop this strong and genuine relationship with God our Father, acting as always with the desire to glorify Him and to do His will at all times. Let us allow ourselves to be guided and strengthened by God our loving Father in all things, and allow Him to guide us through the journey of faith that we have in our own respective lives. May God be with us always and may He continue to bless each and every one of us, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 7 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, commemorating the Mother of God herself, Mary, in her aspect as the one who has shown and given us all her children the rosary as a means for us to find our way to the Lord through her and the rosary. The history of the rosary dated to the early Middle Ages and is often attributed to St. Dominic to whom Our Lady made her appearance, to save many souls through it. At that time, St. Dominic was involved in the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathar heresy raging in southern France, and the rosary is one of the means through which St. Dominic used to reach out to those who have lapsed from the true faith and leading them back to the Church.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which it was detailed about the Lord’s disciples who had gone to witness His Ascension into Heaven, where the members of the Twelve were highlighted to us, each one by their names. They all went forth praising the Lord and believing in His message of hope and assurance, and Mary has a prominent role among them, as the Mother of God herself and as the one who is the maternal figure among all the Apostles and disciples of the Lord. And they spent their time in prayer while waiting for the arrival of the Holy Spirit that the Lord Himself has promised to them, and we see here the unity between Mary and the other early Church members, which reminds us all of the spiritual unity and bond we have with her as well.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we heard of the moment when the Archangel Gabriel came to Mary in Nazareth, in the event known as the Annunciation of the Lord, when God finally revealed the long awaited promise of salvation for His people, the coming of the Messiah or the Saviour which He Himself has reassured His people many times throughout history for. When the Archangel Gabriel brought the Good News to Mary, it was indeed a moment of great rejoicing for the Lord having finally accomplished everything that He had promised to His people. And Mary became the Mother of God, the one to bear the Son of God Most High Himself in her, which is why we are reminded of this fact as we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Rosary today.

We are reminded that Mary is indeed our greatest intercessor and the one who can pray for us in the most powerful and effective way because she herself is now in Heaven with her Son, and is seated by His side, at the honoured position beside His Throne as the Queen Mother of Heaven. Therefore, through our devout prayer of the rosary and through our trust in the intercession of Mary, our loving Mother, each and every one of us will be strengthened and empowered to go through the many difficult challenges in life, as we must remember that we are never alone, but Mary herself, and together with the innumerable saints and Angels of God, all of them are always by our side, praying with us and supporting us throughout the way. Through the rosary we can also help focus ourselves on the Lord amidst all the challenges, distractions and trials in life.

This Feast of our Lady of the Rosary itself has been instituted from the origin of the great victory of the forces of Christendom, the Church and God’s faithful people against the forces of those who sought the destruction of the Church and the Christian faith, and those who sought to dominate the world and oppress the ones who believe in the true path of the Lord, our God and Saviour. At that time, approximately four hundred and fifty years ago, the mighty and growing Ottoman Empire had been swallowing many Christian states and dominions, and has set its eyes to attack more of Christendom, threatening many Christian nations and even the city of Rome itself. Hence, the combined forces of Christendom was assembled by the Pope together with the cooperation of several Christian states in a great Holy League.

The mighty forces of the Ottoman Empire did not discourage the combined forces of Christendom from various countries and states then assembled at the site of Lepanto in what is today part of Greece. At that place, a great battle therefore took place, which forever changed the balance of power and marked a major turning point in the then constant warfare and struggle between the Ottomans and the forces of Christendom. According to eyewitness accounts of the battle, there were those who saw a great heavenly vision of Mary appearing on the skies, together with mighty host of Angels, fighting together with the forces of Christendom against the forces of the unbelievers, crushing them and destroying the mighty fleet of the Ottomans.

The great victory and triumph was celebrated by the whole Christendom, and the Pope ordered that all the church bells ought to toil and ring for the celebration of this great triumph, and he also instituted the Feast of Our Lady of Victory, on this very date, which was the date of the Battle of Lepanto, and eventually this Feast of Our Lady of Victory is celebrated as the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, reminding us all of the constant intercession and help that Mary, our loving Mother has always provided for us, and also the power of the rosary and our prayers in our constant and daily struggles with sin and evil, with darkness and all the forces of the evil ones. Let us all not forget to spend the time to pray to the Lord, with the company of His loving Mother, Mary, Our Lady of the Rosary, who is also our mother, and all the saints.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, having heard of the history of the rosary and how this celebration of Our Lady of the Rosary came to be, let us all hence make good use of the rosary which our Blessed Mother herself has provided to us to help us in our journey of faith and life. Let us all draw ever closer to Our Lord through His Blessed Mother, and through our devout prayers in the rosary and our other faithful commitments in life. May God be with us always and may He continue to strengthen us each day, in our every good works, efforts and endeavours. Amen.

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Monday, 6 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the important responsibilities and obligations that each and every one of us have as Christians, as those whom the Lord had called and chosen so that we may recognise what it is that the Lord has called us all to do in our own respective lives. We should remember that we cannot be ignorant or neglect our responsibilities and the various callings and vocations that the Lord had called us to, in whatever way it is that He wants us to follow Him, just as He has shown us through our Scripture passages today with the calling of the prophet Jonah and also through the Parable of the Good Samaritan that He Himself had told His disciples.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Jonah, we heard of the moment when the Lord called Jonah to be His servant and messenger to the people of the great city of Nineveh, the capital of the great Assyrian Empire. The prophet Jonah was reluctant to follow this mission and instead of obeying God and doing what He had wanted him to do, he chose to flee from the Lord, thinking the he would be able to flee from the Lord’s calling, taking a ship to distant lands away from the mission that he had been called to do. And we heard how the Lord sent a great storm to the ship as it was on its way, and Jonah had to admit to the ship crews how he had been fleeing from the Lord and refusing to do as He had commanded it.

That was how Jonah was famously then thrown off from the ship on his own request, and the Lord sent a great beast of the sea, believed to be a whale, to take care of Jonah as he was in the belly of the beast for three days until the beast brought him to the shore again. Jonah repented his previous disobedience and followed the Lord’s guidance, and he went to the city of Nineveh to do what God had sent him to do there, to proclaim God’s words and judgment to that city which had been filled with much wickedness and evils. Through this story of the prophet Jonah, we are all reminded that each and every one of us has specific callings and missions which the Lord has entrusted to us, and we should listen to Him and follow Him in everything that He has called us to do in our respective lives.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the famous parable of the Good Samaritan in which the Lord highlighted to His disciples the story of the Good Samaritan who have helped a severely injured Jew that was beset and struck by bandits during his journey on the way to Jericho. In that occasion, we heard how three people passed by the place where the injured person was, firstly a priest, then a Levite, and last of all, a Samaritan. And if we understand the context and the significance of these people who passed by and who was the one that actually stopped by and helped the injured man, then we will realise why it truly matters for us to follow the example of the Good Samaritan in the parable today.

First of all, the Jews and the Samaritans are two different groups of people that were actually descended from a rather common ancestry, as both of them descended from the ancient Israelites, the original chosen people of God who dwelled in the Promised Land of Canaan. However, after the reign of King Solomon of Israel and the division of Israel into two opposing kingdoms of Israel and Judah, this led to the bitter division among the two groups of people, which further crystallised after the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel centred in Samaria, from where the term Samaritan came from. At that time, the Assyrians that conquered the northern kingdom brought in people from other lands to dwell in that land, and over the centuries, these people intermingled with some of the remnants of the Israelites to become the Samaritans.

Meanwhile the Jews descended from the people of both Judah and Israel that had been exiled to Babylon, Assyria and elsewhere, and when they returned back to their ancestral homeland, they dwelled mostly in Judea and Galilee surrounding Samaria, where the Samaritans lived in. Over the centuries, their accumulated differences and misunderstandings grew, and the Jews and the Samaritans grew to resent each other, and considered the other party to be flawed, mistaken and wicked in their way of living their lives and faith. Each group claimed to be the righteous bearers of the true belief in God, and each even had their versions of the Torah, which respectively claimed that their version was the true one while the other one was faulty and flawed.

Ironically however, from the perspective of the Jews, to whom most of the Lord’s followers and disciples belonged to, among the three people, the priest, the Levite and the Samaritan, it was only the Samaritan who bothered to stop and help the injured Jew. The priest and the Levite for the context were the ones who were highly respected among the Jewish people, and they should have been the ones to help the injured Jew, their own fellow countryman, and yet, they did not even stop and help at all. It was a Samaritan, the so-called mortal and bitter enemy of the Jewish people that showed love and concern, and not only that, but he even went the extra mile to help the man, and committed himself to his well-being afterwards too. This is therefore a reminder from the Lord to each and every one of us, His disciples and followers, as Christians, to show true love and genuine care to everyone, regardless their origins and backgrounds.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Bruno, a courageous priest and servant of God who is also known as St. Bruno of Cologne. St. Bruno was the renowned founder of the Carthusians Order, also known as the Order of Carthusians that gathered both monks and nuns who devoted themselves to the rule set by their founder. St. Bruno himself was born in Cologne in today’s Germany in the early eleventh century, and then becoming a priest and involved in education and schools in the region of Reims in today’s France, as a renowned teacher, philosopher and theologian. Some of his students would go on to become bishops and leaders of the Church, and one of them even became Pope, namely Pope Urban II.

He was also made as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Reims and managed the diocese, its goods and resources well, uprooting the corruption in the local Church, and was renowned for his confrontation against the new Bishop of Reims who was a worldly and corrupt man, an aristocrat with no clear love and concern for the Church and its people. St. Bruno persevered in his efforts and struggles with the bishop and eventually prevailed despite the challenges and difficulties that he had to face in doing so for a number of years. When he himself was about to be made a bishop for his accomplishments, he chose to withdraw himself from such worldly ambitions, and that was how he eventually built up the foundation for the Carthusian Order. Through his many efforts, inspirations and piety, he inspired many people to live their lives worthily and to commit themselves ever more wholeheartedly to the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect on the words of the Scriptures, the examples of the prophet Jonah and the message of the Parable of the Good Samaritan, as well as the life and ministry of St. Bruno of Cologne. Let us all realise that each and every one of us are called to good actions and dedications, in whatever way we can, so that in our own daily lives, in our own respectives areas of responsibility, in whichever parts of our lives, we may continue to be good role models and examples to everyone around us. Let our faith and actions shine forth with the grace of God, and may these be the inspiration that strengthen many more people in their faith, especially those whose lives have been touched by us. May God bless us always in all of our endeavours, and may He bless us in our every good efforts and works, now and always. Amen.

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Sunday, 5 October 2025 : Twenty-Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us have been reminded of the need for us all to trust in God, as His servants and followers, that we do not easily give up the struggle and fight for the sake of our faith in Him. All of us should always persevere in our faith even when it may be very difficult for us to endure through the various challenges, trials and difficulties that we encounter daily in our lives. We must continue to do our best each and in every moments to be good role models and examples for everyone around us. We should not allow ourselves to be dissuaded by those challenges and trials that we end up losing our sight and focus on the Lord and on what He wants us to do in our lives.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of the prophet Habakkuk in which the conversation between Habakkuk and God was highlighted to us. Prophet Habakkuk was sent by God to the people of the kingdom of Judah during the years of its waning and final existence, when the Babylonians were rising as a threat that would eventually lead to the end and destruction of the kingdom of Judah, its capital Jerusalem and the Temple that God had established and built in that city. Prophet Habakkuk delivered God’s words to the people of Judah, and much like his near contemporary, Jeremiah, he faced a lot of hardships, rejection and persecutions due to his efforts and works, as the people resisted what the Lord had wanted to tell them through His prophets.

The Lord revealed to the people of Judah through Habakkuk that if they continued to disobey Him and if they kept on committing what was wicked in His sight, worshipping pagan idols and gods, refusing to follow His Law and commandments and if they kept on persecuting and murdering His prophets, then in the end they would all face the consequences of their actions, where they would be conquered by their enemies, facing humiliation for losing their cities and lands, and they would be exiled from those lands to distant lands. But the stubbornness of those in Judah brought great misery upon Habakkuk, and the prophet sought the Lord’s help, for which he was strengthened and empowered, reassured and reminded that God could do everything for those who are faithful to Him.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard of the words of St. Paul the Apostle in his Epistle to his protege, St. Timothy, one of the first bishops of the Church and the successor of the Apostles as the leaders of the Church, reminding him and the other Church leaders about the reality of what it is like to struggle and to labour for the sake of the Lord in the works of evangelisation and the proclamation of the Good News of God. While sufferings and struggles, trials and difficulties would indeed be part and parcel of the works and ministry of the Apostles and their successors, all the disciples and the other missionaries of the Lord, but they were not alone in their struggles and efforts, as the Lord was always with them, guiding and journeying with them.

St. Paul encouraged St. Timothy and the other early Christians to remain strongly rooted in their faith in God, to remain true to what the Lord had called them to do, to be faithful to the teachings of the Gospels and the truth of God in all things, never be discouraged and be prevented from doing their good works because of the oppositions and challenges that they had to face. They should trust in the Lord and remember His assurances, just as what He has assured the prophet Habakkuk in the Old Testament. Through their hard works and efforts, firmly entrenched in the gifts of God through the Holy Spirit, they would indeed carry out many good and wonderful works for the Lord’s sake, and touched countless people and bringing many closer to God.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples in the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, in which He highlighted that first of all, if they were to have genuine faith in the Lord, no matter how small it is, then they can do all things in Him, and everything will become possible for them. This is the Lord highlighting to His disciples the importance and the power of faith, one which we ourselves should also have, the trust and faith that we ought to have in God, despite the hardships and challenges that they may have to encounter in their path and endure. The Lord does not abandon His servants and disciples in their hour of need, and even when they suffer, the Lord would always be with them, guiding and strengthening them in their paths, at all times.

Then, the Lord also highlighted to the disciples how each and every one of them should not expect remunerations and benefits from the Lord for what they were doing in carrying out the missions that the Lord had entrusted to them. They were supposed to be doing whatever the Lord had asked of them to do, and the Lord technically did not owe anything to them either. This is an important reminder which the Lord told to His disciples and also to all of us as well, that we should not be faithful merely to seek personal gains or for our own selfish desires and ambitions. We should serve the Lord because we genuinely seek to glorify Him and to do His will, and to carry out His good works in our community and among all those whom we encounter daily and at all times.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore remember that following the Lord will likely be full of challenges, trials and difficulties for us. There may be moments when we may want to give up and abandon our missions and even our faith, but we must remember that the Lord is always with us, by our side, ever encouraging us all throughout the way. We should always trust in God and His Providence and continue to do our very best so that in each and every things we do, in our every words and actions, in our interactions and in how we treat everyone around us, we will always be genuine in showing the most Christian love and way of living, so that we may become the powerful inspirations for all those around us, now and always.

May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours and strengthen us always in faith, in all that we say and do, in our every interactions, to be God’s ever faithful disciples, followers and servants at all times, ever full of devotion and faith in Him. Amen.

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Saturday, 4 October 2025 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church reminds us through the message of the Sacred Scriptures that God is truly indeed loving, compassionate and generous in His love, in His mercy and kindness. God has always loved each and every one of us even when we have erred, wandered off and disobeyed Him, and He has always been patient in reaching out to us, in helping us all to find our way back to Him and to be reconciled with Him. He has always been patient and forgiving, kind and compassionate towards us, ever concerned about us and our well-being, and He certainly does not want any one of us to be lost to Him forever. And that is why God has always been active in giving us all His assurances, help and providence in our journey through various means possible.

In our first reading today, from the continuation of what we heard from the Book of the prophet Baruch in the previous day, while we heard of God’s words of warning and chastisement for His people in the kingdom of Judah for having disobeyed and disregarded His Law and commandments, today, in the passage that we heard, the Lord reassured His people, that while His chastisement and punishment indeed would come for the wickedness and evils which they had committed, but the Lord never truly abandoned those whom He loves dearly, and He would always be faithful to the Covenant which He had made with them and with their ancestors. God would always be with those who are precious to Him, and he will not abandon them in the manner that they had abandoned and betrayed Him.

This of course does not mean that God tolerates everything which His people had done, as wickedness and evils are still abhorrent to Him. But this means that God is so rich and generous in mercy and forgiveness, that He is always ready to give and show this mercy to any one of us whenever we come to Him seeking His forgiveness and grace. It is often us who are always dragging our feet in not being willing to seek God’s mercy and forgiveness, and it is usually us who have often delayed and took our time in embracing God and His kindness, mercy and compassion. Yet, no matter what, God will always love us, and as we heard from the prophet Baruch, He promised restoration and regeneration for the people who had been facing struggles, rejection, persecutions and humiliations, and they would blessed again as their faithful ancestors had been.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist where the Lord Jesus Himself gave His reassurance to His disciples, telling them all that they have all seen the salvation of God manifested clearly and perfectly in Him, in the Son of God manifested in the flesh as the Son of Man, the Saviour Himself, through Whom God would liberate all of His beloved people, His sons and daughters, from the tyranny and domination of sin and evil. God will not allow His beloved ones to stumble and to fall into eternal damnation by the designs of the evil one. He has planned it all from the very beginning and assured us all of His salvation, which He delivered to us through His Son, Who willingly bore for us all the combined weight of our sins and faults.

And it was by that act of supreme love, compassion and selflessness, that Christ our Lord and Saviour liberated us from the clutches of the evil one, from the domination of Satan and sin. The Lord Himself predicted the upcoming downfall of Satan, and while Satan’s might and forces indeed seemed to be vast and fearsome, but in the end, he would not be able to stand against God, and would eventually be defeated. And all those disciples and followers were truly fortunate that they lived to witness as everything unfolded, the perfect fulfilment of everything which God had promised and revealed to His people throughout history. Many people in the past, their ancestors and aothers longed and waited to see, witness and hear everything that the disciples of the Lord had heard, and never did.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the renowned St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Order of Friars Minor, also best known as the Franciscans after their founder. St. Francis of Assisi was born as Giovannj di Pietro di Bernardone, as John, son of Peter Bernardone, a rich textile merchant in Medieval era of what is now Italy. He was given the finest education and preparation early on in his life as his father expected the young St. Francis to succeed him in his textile and merchant business. However, God had different plan for this young man, as the young St. Francis encountered the Lord through the poor and the needy, and while he was not lacking anything material, and living the high life of a rich young man, blessed in all worldly matters, but he was not satisfied and truly happy.

He began experiencing spiritual events and also conversion experience, and in one well-known occasion, the young St. Francis encountered the Lord at the ruined church of San Damiano, where he heard the Lord’s voice, telling him to repair His Church that is falling into ruins. St. Francis took it as the Lord asking him literally to restore the church at San Damiano that was in ruins where he was at, and he took some of his father’s textiles and merchandise, selling them to fund the restoration of the church. The priest in charge of the church refused the money as it was obtained from ill-gotten gains by stealing, which upset St. Francis, who threw the coins on the floor. And when St. Francis’ father found out about it and confronted him on several occasions, leading to a settlement before the Bishop of Assisi, St. Francis very publicly renounced both his father and his inheritance, symbolically stripping himself of all of his clothes which he returned to his father.

Thereafter, St. Francis of Assisi went to live with some others, begging for money and living a life of communal care, which eventually became the beginning of the Franciscan order. They lived a holy and pious life, ministering to the people around them, proclaiming God’s words through everyone, and not just through words, but even more importantly, through real and genuine actions. St. Francis inspired many others through his examples, and very soon his Franciscan order grew and gained the attention even from the local bishops and the Pope himself. Through all these works and many others I cannot mention, St. Francis of Assisi has indeed shown us what it truly means to be a committed Christian, to be truly focused on the Lord and wholeheartedly committed to Him, while resisting the temptations of worldly pleasures and vices. To the end of his life, St. Francis of Assisi continued to contribute to the good works and ministry of the Church, reaching out towards and touching the lives of many.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have reflected from the passages of our Sacred Scriptures today and also from the life and works of St. Francis of Assisi, let us all therefore continue to do our best in living our lives so that we may continue to walk ever more courageously in the path that St. Francis of Assisi and our many other holy predecessors had walked in. Let us all be good role models and examples for one another in our faith, in how we live our lives faithfully in each day and at every moments, so that our whole lives may be good examples for everyone around us and for those whom we encounter in life. May God bless us always and bless our every good efforts and endeavours, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Friday, 3 October 2025 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures we are reminded of the need for all of us to turn away from our disobedience and sins against God, from all the wicked and dark ways we have done in our respective lives. We are reminded that as God’s chosen and beloved people, all of us ought to do what we have been shown by the Lord Himself, in being exemplary in our words, actions and deeds, to do what the Lord Himself had taught us to do, in all His Law, commandments and precepts. And this is what we are constantly being reminded of as we listened to the words of the Lord contained in these Scripture passages, reminding us that we should be good examples and inspirations for our brethren around us, and not to bring scandal to our faith instead.

In our first reading today, we heard from the passage taken from the Book of the prophet Baruch where the Lord spoke to His people through Baruch, His prophet, whom He had sent to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah at the same time of the ministry of the prophet Jeremiah. Biblical and historical evidences pointed out to the prophet Baruch being a good friend, follower and secretary of Jeremiah, another great prophet who had been sent by God to warn His people in Judah for their wickedness and lack of faith in God. The prophet Baruch stated clearly this very fact before the people, stating how the people of Judah had veered off from the path that they should have walked, and they had disobeyed and disregarded the Law and the commandments of their Lord and Master.

That was also why the people of Judah were facing such difficulties and predicaments, reminding them of the blessings and curses which the Lord had made to His people since the days and times of their Exodus from Egypt, as recorded in the Torah, where the Lord would bless His people if they were to obey and follow His Law and commandments, and on the other hand, curses and sufferings would be their lot should they disobey and disregard what the Lord Himself had placed before them. And by the time of the ministry of the prophet Baruch and Jeremiah, the kingdom of Judah was already in the last days of its existence, hammered all around by its enemies and was on the last moments before Judah and Jerusalem itself would be destroyed by the Babylonians.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the passage where the Lord Jesus was famously berating and criticising openly the cities of the region of Galilee where He often ministered and performed miracles in, such as Capernaum, Bethsaida and Chorazin. All those cities were the cities where the Jewish people, the descendants of the Israelites dwelled in within the land of Galilee. The Lord had performed many miracles in those places, and yet, still despite all of that, He still often faced a lot of obstacles, challenges and stubborn oppositions to His teachings and works, particularly from among the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, those who rigidly adhered to their version and interpretations of the Law that they refused to listen to what the Lord brought upon them.

It was the pride, arrogance and haughtiness of those Pharisees and teachers of the Law which had prevented them from truly being able to listen and to appreciate what the Lord had wanted to tell them all through His miracles and actions. Those Pharisees and teachers of the Law were so preoccupied and so fanatical in their beliefs and in their way of observing the Law of God, that as another extreme against what the people of Judah had done in the time of the prophet Baruch and Jeremiah, they had ended up idolising their own version of the Law, and even their own piety and sense of superiority over the others, that blocked and prevented them from truly understanding what the Lord actually wanted them to do with His Law and commandments.

Instead of making the Law and commandments of God more accessible and understandable by the people as they should have done, and instead of helping God’s people, especially the most marginalised ones, those who have been neglected and lost to Him, to be able to come back to the Lord’s loving Presence and embrace His mercy as He intended them to be, as the shepherds of the flock of the Lord. The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law ought to help guide and lead those who have been lost to the Lord to Him, and instead, they made it even more difficult for those people to come seek the Lord and to be reconciled with Him as they ostracised those people even more and were even more biased and prejudiced against them.

And the Lord pointed out the contrast and the irony, that the people of the places where the so-called pagans and unbelievers lived in, like in Tyre and Sidon, they would actually believe in the Lord, in His signs, miracles and works, when the Jewish people and their leaders refused to do so. That was indeed the reality, as many among the followers of the Lord, both in the early Church and afterwards, came from among the Gentiles, or the non-Jewish people. Some of the Jewish people including the Apostles themselves and their companions did convert, as were quite a number among the Pharisees themselves, but vast majority of the early Christians came from many non-Jewish origins. They all believed in the Lord and put their trust and faith in Him, as we all also have done this day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to these passages from the Sacred Scriptures, let us all consider carefully our paths forward in life so that we may indeed be worthy of what the Lord Himself has entrusted to us, all that He has promised and assured us with. If we are truly faithful to Him in the most wholesome way, and not merely being superficial in faith, then surely and eventually, we will be blessed by the Lord and we will be worthy of Him, unlike those leaders whom the Lord Himself had criticised for their hypocrisy and lack of genuine faith. May the Lord continue to guide and strengthen each and every one of us in faith, in each and every moments of our lives, and may He continue to bless us all in everything that we do, now and always. Amen.