Weekday of Advent

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Tuesday, 17 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 1 : 1-17

This is the account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of David, Son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.

Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar),  Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron of Aram. Aram was the father of Aminadab, Aminadab of Nahshon, Nahshon of Salmon.

Salmon was the father of Boaz. His mother was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed. His mother was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David, the king. David was the father of Solomon. His mother had been Uriah’s wife.

Solomon was the father of Rehoboam. Then came the kings : Abijah, Asaph, Jehoshaphat, Joram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah. Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

After the deportation to Babylon, Jechoniah was the father of Salathiel and Salathiel of Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud, Abiud of Eliakim, and Eliakim of Azor. Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, and Akim the father of Eliud. Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar of Matthan, and Matthan of Jacob.

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and from her came Jesus who is called the Christ – the Messiah. There were then fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, and fourteen generations from David to the deportation to Babylon, and fourteen generations from the deportation to Babylon to the birth of Christ.

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Tuesday, 17 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 71 : 2, 3-4ab, 7-8, 17

May the King rule Your people justly and defend the rights of the lowly.

Let the mountains bring peace to the people, and the hills justice. He will defend the cause of the poor, deliver the children of the needy.

Justice will flower in his days, and peace abound till the moon be no more. For He reigns from sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth.

May His Name endure forever; may His Name be as lasting as the sun. All the races will boast about Him, and He will be blessed by all nations.

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Tuesday, 17 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 49 : 2, 8-10

Gather round, sons of Jacob. And listen to your father Israel!

Judah, your brothers will praise you! You shall seize your enemies by the neck! Your father’s sons shall bow before you.

Judah, a young lion! You return from the prey, my son! Like a lion he stoops and crouches, and like a lioness, who dares to rouse him?

The sceptre shall not be taken from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs, and who has the obedience of the nations.

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Monday, 16 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the Lord is our teacher and our guide, the One who would bring enlightenment to this darkened world of ours, dark in the depth of the ocean of sin, which promotes ignorance, indifference, and even hostility against the infinite and gracious love and kindness of the Lord. He came in Jesus, incarnated into man, so that He might teach His own people directly, on the truth about God and His plan for all of us.

Jesus taught with clear authority, and He showed forth His infinite wisdom and intellect even as He taught the people. He showed them the revelation of the Lord’s Good News to mankind and showed them the truth about what God has prepared for all of us, that is salvation, and the promise of eternal life. He did not make up anything in His teachings, because all that He taught was the truth and is truth.

And although many things had been revealed through the prophets and the words in the Scripture, many still adamantly and obstinately refused to believe in Christ and in what He had taught them. They questioned Him and even His authority, even though they had eyes to see and ears to listen to what Christ had done, which would have been far more than enough to show the authority of the Messiah.

They doubted Him and refused to believe what He would tell them. They ignored His advice to them, and even plotted for His downfall. Such was the reception of a people for whom Christ Himself has come down upon this world for, to the point that He would even die to bear our sins and the consequences of our sins.

But was Jesus bothered by all these negative reactions, especially coming from the leaders of the people and the powerful ones in the society? No! Jesus brushed them aside, masterfully trapping them in their own queries, and He continued to teach the people. He found no point in arguing or debating with them, for after all, they were hell bent at trapping Him in His own words, and were adamantly against Him.

Similar situation also happened in the first reading taken from the Book of Numbers. In order to give all of you an understanding of what happened, one of the kings of the people of Canaan hostile to the people of Israel during their Exodus from Egypt and journey towards the Promised Land, was so terrified by the approach of the Israelites that he resolved to employ the service of a seer, named Balaam, a seer of God.

Balaam was employed to curse the people of Israel, that they would be cursed and destroyed. Is it not the same as the Pharisees who employed all their intelligence and knowledge for the wrong thing, that is wishing for the downfall of Jesus? But Balaam did not obey the orders of his employer, and instead of cursing the Israelites, he blessed them instead with rich blessings.

Balaam showed that we as the children and people of God should have no need to fear worldly authorities. Instead we all should obey the Lord, the One who has real and true authority over all creations. It is He who possesses all authority, the source of all authority that we have. We will not have any authority if we do not adhere ourselves to the Lord.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today, as we reflect on the readings we had heard from the Scripture, let us first acknowledge the authority of the Lord and place our full trust in Him. Let us not be like the Pharisees, the Sadducees and many other people who were so occupied with their own pride and arrogance, so as to refuse to accept the Lord and listen to His teachings, stubbornly clinging to their jealousy of the Lord for challenging their own authority.

Let us trust in the Lord, and pay close attention to His teachings. Let us not ignore His call to us, a call which He intended for us to heed, that we may be called to be closer and closer to His love and mercy, changing our once sinful ways, with the ways of the Lord. Make God our guide and our leader, and resolve to walk closely within His path, without turning left or right. Listen to His words and let His words come in and transform us all. God be with us all. Amen.

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Monday, 16 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 21 : 23-27

Jesus had entered the Temple and was teaching, when the chief priests, the teachers of the Law and the Jewish authorities came to Him, and asked, “What authority have You to act like this? Who gave You authority to do all this?”

Jesus answered them, “I will also ask you a question, only one. And if you give Me an answer, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. When John began to baptise, was it a work of God, or was it merely something human?”

They reasoned out among themselves, “If we reply that it was a work of God, He will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ And if we say, ‘The baptism of John was merely something human,’ we have got to beware of the people, for all hold John as a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.”

And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what right I do these things.”

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Monday, 16 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 24 : 4bc-5ab, 6-7bc, 8-9

O Lord, make known to me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and instruct me, for You are my God, my Saviour.

Remember Your compassion, o Lord, Your unfailing love from of old. In Your love remember me.

Good and upright, the Lord teaches sinners His way. He teaches the humble of heart and guides them in what is right.

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Monday, 16 December 2013 : 3rd Week of Advent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Numbers 24 : 2-7, 15-17a

Balaam looked up and saw Israel camping, tribe by tribe; and the Spirit of God came upon him and he uttered his song : “Word of Balaam, son of Beor, the seer, the one who hears the words of God, and beholds the vision of the Almighty, in ecstasy, with eyes unveiled.”

“How goodly are your tents, Jacob, your encampments, Israel! Like valleys stretching far, like gardens beside a stream, like aloes planted by YHVH, like cedars beside the waters. His buckets are overflowing and his seeds are always watered. His king becomes stronger than Agag, and his kingdom grows.”

Then Balaam pronounced his oracle : “Word of Balaam, son of Beor, the seer, the one who hears the word of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, and sees the vision of the Almighty, in ecstasy, with eyes unveiled.”

“I see a figure, but not really. I behold Him but not near. A star shall come forth from Jacob, he rises with a staff in his hand.

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Sunday, 15 December 2013 : Third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or Rose (Gaudete Sunday)

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today is Gaudete Sunday, or Joyful Sunday, where ‘Gaude’ or ‘Joy’ is the spirit of the day. We celebrate today, even as we anticipate the coming of Christ in this Advent season, the joy of the coming of Christ Himself. That is why, if you see the priests and the colour used today in the liturgy is rose, to signify this joy, the joy of the coming of the Messiah.

And today’s readings rightly reflect this nature of joy. That all creation ought to rejoice at the coming of Christ into the world. The world was in darkness and yet light has come into it, and made everything illuminated once again in the light of God. Jesus came and during His ministry in this world, He performed many miracles, healing the sick, touching the lepers, curing them, and making the lame walk, making the blind see once again.

You can just imagine the joy that these people experience, as their afflictions were removed by the power of God. For many of us, who are well endowed with excellent health and good life, it may not be easy for us to imagine the joy that these people experienced. Yet, let us take some time to think, to reflect, and to appreciate what we have around us, all of which are the gifts and graces of God.

We have beautiful environment around us, the wondrous mountains and valleys, rivers, lakes, and seas, the beauty of flowers and plants, the shining glory of the sun, the marvel of the moon and stars at night, and many other wonders of God’s creations in this world. We can enjoy all these, because we have normal and healthy vision, good eyes with which we can see all of these wonders and marvel at them.

Yet, what if our sight was taken from us? What if we could no longer see? The light that we see around us will be no more, and everything will be dark, truly dark. Imagine the suffering of those who had been born blind. They do not know what is light, because they never see light. They have known only darkness all their lives, and they do not know what are mountains, flowers, moon, stars, and others, because what they knew of them, is only what has been told to them, but they cannot directly know what they actually look like.

When Jesus opened their eyes, and light for the first time poured into them, imagine the joy experienced by those whose sight were restored. They could see again, and could marvel at God’s creations around them, seeing things they have never seen before. God did not leave them in darkness, and neither did He leave those who suffer in their suffering. Through Christ they were renewed and given new life of glory in Him.

How is this then relevant to us, brothers and sisters in Christ? Precisely because we too are people afflicted, with illness. We may think that we are free from any afflictions, illnesses and defects, because externally and scientifically we are clean from any physical defects, but in fact all of us has a defect in us. A very serious and dangerous defect indeed. A defect that if we do not correct it, will drag us into eternal suffering, one that is without end.

Yes, I think all of you somehow have gotten what I am trying to say. We are all afflicted with sin, the evil of sin. Ever since mankind rebelled and disobeyed the will and the laws of the Lord, we have ever been imperfect, tainted with the defect of sin within each one of us. Sin has afflicted us, and we are ill with it. The Lord came to heal all, including all of us. And the greatest of His healing came about when He took up His final mission, lifted up on the cross with all of our sins that He bore upon Himself.

Healing us from our sinful afflictions is the greatest joy that we can ever enjoy, and this is what Christ came into our world for, His divine mission, to fulfill the long-planned salvation that God had prepared for all of us. That is also the true message of Christmas, that is the joy in the coming of the One, who took it upon Himself to be born as one of us, and to eventually be the One who brought true joy, through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead.

Today is Gaudete Sunday, as we rejoice in the joy of the expectation of the coming of Jesus our Lord. This is why even though in this Advent season, where we are in a state of subdued celebration, in a preparation period before Christmas, this Sunday, the colour used is rose instead of the usual purple or violet, to signify this joy of Christmas, the joy in Christ that we celebrate.

What is this joy of Christmas that I had mentioned? This is not the joy of the secular Christmas celebrations that we have outside, in our malls and shopping centres. The joy of Christmas is not about the parties and revelries that accompany it. The joy of Christmas is not about the feast and the meal that we usually have on Christmas, with our family members. The joy of Christmas is not about buying new clothes and exchanging gifts. Neither does Christmas mean Christmas trees and Santa Claus for sure!

The joyous occasions and events that I had mentioned above are part of our celebrations, our human way to show our gladness and happiness for the true joy of Christmas. And yes, that true joy of Christmas, is about Christ. It is all about Christ and none other. The Lord who came into this world as a baby, and the same Lord who would give His own life for us, to heal us, and bring us into eternal glory, is the true joy of Christmas.

Therefore brothers and sisters, as we approach even closer to Christmas, to the celebration of the coming of our Lord, have we made Christ to be truly at the centre of our celebrations? Have we made Him as the focus of our joy this Christmas? If we have done so, then well done. It means that we have gotten what it means to celebrate the joy of Christmas, and it means that the true joy of all joy, will be ours. God bless us all with a wonderful Christmas joy. Amen!

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Sunday, 15 December 2013 : Third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or Rose (Gaudete Sunday)

Matthew 11 : 2-11

When John the Baptist heard in prison about the activities of Christ, he sent a message by his disciples, asking Him, “Are You the One who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

Jesus answered them, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see : the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are made clean, the deaf hear, the dead are brought back to life, and Good News is reaching the poor; and how fortunate is the one who does not take offense at Me!”

As the messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John : “When you went out to the desert, what did you expect to see? A reed swept by the wind? What did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? People who wear fine clothes live in palaces. What did you really go out to see? A prophet? Yes, indeed, and even more than a prophet. He is the man of whom Scripture says : ‘I send My messenger ahead of You to prepare the way before You.'”

“I tell you this : no one greater than John the Baptist has come forward from among the sons of women, and yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

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Sunday, 15 December 2013 : Third Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or Rose (Gaudete Sunday)

James 5 : 7-10

Be patient then, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. See how the sower waits for the precious fruits of the earth, looking forward patiently to the autumn and spring rains. You also be patient and do not lose heart, because the Lord’s coming is near.

Beloved, do not fight among yourselves and you will not be judged. See, the Judge is already at the door. Take for yourselves, as an example of patience, the suffering of the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s Name.