Weekdays of Easter

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Thursday, 4 April 2024 : Thursday within Easter Octave (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 3 : 11-26

While the once crippled man clung to Peter and John, all the people, struck with astonishment, came running to them in Solomon’s Porch, as it was called. When Peter saw the people, he said to them, “Fellow Israelites, why are you amazed at this? Why do you stare at us as if it was by some power or holiness of our own that we made this man walk?”

“The God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified His servant Jesus Whom you handed over to death and denied before Pilate, when even Pilate had decided to release Him. You rejected the Holy and Just One, and you insisted that a murderer be released to you. You killed the Master of life, but God raised Him from the dead and we are witnesses to this.”

“It is His Name and faith in His Name, that has healed this man whom you see and recognise. The faith that comes through Jesus has given him wholeness in the presence of all of you. Yet I know that you acted out of ignorance, as did your leaders. God has fulfilled in this way what He had foretold through all the prophets, that His Messiah would suffer.”

“Repent, then, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out and the time of refreshment may come by the mercy of God, when He sends the Messiah appointed for you, Jesus. For He must remain in heaven until the time of the universal restoration which God spoke of long ago through His holy prophets.”

“Moses foretold this when he said : The Lord God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people; you shall listen to Him in all that He says to you. Whoever does not listen to that Prophet is to be cut off from among his people.”

“In fact, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel onward, have announced the events of these days. You are the children of the prophets and heirs of the covenant that God gave to your ancestors when He said to Abraham : All the families of the earth will be blessed through your descendant. It is to you first that God sends His Servant; He raised Him to life to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”

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Wednesday, 3 April 2024 : Wednesday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the words of the Scriptures which we are again reminded of the great joy that we are celebrating during this time of Easter when we rejoice most wonderfully because of Our Lord having Risen from the dead, triumphed over sin, evil and death. And as He has shown us therefore the path to eternal life and salvation, all of us are reminded again this day of what it truly means for us to be Christians, that is to be filled with joy of the Resurrection, to be free from the dominion and attachments to sin and darkness present all around us so that we are truly an Easter people, a people full of God’s Light, Love and Hope, armed and strengthened with the knowledge that God has triumphed, and we too shall be triumphant with Him if we remain true and faithful to Him, despite the many challenges and trials that we may have to face.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles of the moment when the two Apostles, St. Peter and St. John, came to the Temple of God in Jerusalem and encountered a man who was crippled from birth, and who asked them for some money, begging for his livelihood. We heard how St. Peter and St. John instead miraculously cured the man from his ailments, in the power and Name of the Risen Lord, showing the grace and love of God, which He has shown to those who have faith in Him and in His Providence. The Lord healed the crippled man through His Apostles, and with that, many of the people saw firsthand the power of God’s healing through His Risen Son, proving everything that the Apostles had been proclaiming about in those days regarding the Resurrection of the Lord.

The Apostles had testified before the people of God about everything that they themselves had heard, witnessed and seen from the Risen Lord, having experienced the glory of the Resurrected Christ and beheld Him with their very own eyes. The Lord had also commanded them all to proclaim His truth, Good News and His Resurrection to all the whole world, calling on them to go forth and to reveal Him to the people of all the nations, which the Apostles and disciples took up faithfully, courageously going forth to the various places where they spoke fearlessly about the Lord and everything that He has taught them. Thus, we heard the testimony of faith of St. Peter and St. John, who proclaimed God’s healing and salvation by the healing of the crippled man, among other works.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Luke the account of what happened on the day of the Lord’s Resurrection, when the disciples first heard about the Lord Jesus having risen from the dead, and then how two disciples of the Lord who were on their way towards the village of Emmaus just outside of Jerusalem were debating and discussing about what they had heard about the Lord’s resurrection. Those two disciples could not agree and were still in disbelief at everything that had happened during those momentous few days since the Lord’s crucifixion, and then later on with His glorious Resurrection from the dead. The Risen Lord then appeared to them, albeit in the form that the two disciples could not yet recognise at first, and He journeyed with them down that road to Emmaus.

We heard how the Lord discussed the matter with the two disciples throughout the journey, and how He quoted the Scriptures and the words of the prophets, to highlight to them that everything had happened exactly as how the Lord Himself had wanted it to be, and just as how the prophets had proclaimed earlier on. He strengthened their faith and gave them courage through His words and what He had gone through with them, and finally, at the end, revealed Himself to them, that He was indeed the Lord, having risen from the dead, and was no longer in the tomb. This was one of the many incidences and moments when the Risen Lord appeared to His disciples, showing them that He has indeed risen as the others had said, and many became witnesses of His Resurrection, His triumph against sin, evil and death.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through what we have heard in today’s Scripture readings, all of us are reminded of the Resurrection of the Lord, which is one of the core beliefs and tenets of our Christian faith. At every moments and times when we profess our faith in the Creed, we always mention our faith in the Lord Who has risen from the dead after His crucifixion and death. But do we truly believe in this truth, brothers and sisters? Do we really embody this faith we have in the Risen Lord, believing that through Him we can be free from the tyranny and dominion of sin, and receive the assurance of everlasting life and true joy with Him. Do we truly trust in Him and allow Him to lead us in our lives so that by walking in the path that He has shown us, we may enter into the more holy and worthy existence in God’s Presence?

Let us all be strengthened and encouraged by what we have heard from the Scripture passages today, being reminded as always that what we believe in is truly the truth. The Apostles and disciples of the Lord had themselves witnessed all these in person, and many of them willingly endured sufferings and hardships, trials, imprisonments and martyrdom, all because they truly believed in the truth of God, His love and everything that He had done for our salvation, which culminated in His glorious Resurrection. Had there been no Resurrection of the Lord, then their movement and efforts would have floundered and fizzled off just as what had happened to the many False Messiahs that were aplenty at that time. The fact that the message of God’s truth and His Resurrection remains strong till this very day is a reminder for all of us of this immutable truth and the mission which we all have, that is to proclaim His Resurrection and Good News to the whole world.

May the Risen Lord continue to help and strengthen us in our respective missions and vocations in our lives, that we may always strive to be truly worthy and good in all of our every actions, words and deeds, so that we may be good role models and inspirations to everyone all around us. May all those who witness us, our words and works may continue to be inspired and called to follow the Lord ever more worthily, so that through our lives we may be the shining beacons of God’s Light and salvation, and more and more people may come closer to Him, to be touched by His light and grace, and come out from the darkness and sin that is all around us in this world. Amen.

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Wednesday, 3 April 2024 : Wednesday within Easter Octave (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 24 : 13-35

At that time, on the same day Jesus rose from the dead, two followers of Jesus were going to Emmaus, a village seven miles from Jerusalem, and they talked about what had happened. While they were talking and arguing about what had happened, Jesus came up and walked with them. But their eyes were not able to recognise Him.

He asked, “What is it you are talking about?” The two stood still, looking sad. Then the one named Cleophas answered, “Why, it seems You are the only traveller to Jerusalem who does not know what haw happened there these past few days.” And He asked, “What is it?”

They replied, “It is about Jesus of Nazareth. He was a Prophet, You know, mighty in word and deed before God and the people. But the chief priests and our rulers sentenced Him to death. They handed Him over to be crucified. We had hoped that He would redeem Israel. It is now the third day since all this took place.”

“It is also true that some women of our group have disturbed us. When they went to the tomb at dawn, they did not find His Body; and they came and told us that they had had a vision of Angels, who said that Jesus was alive. Some of our people went to the tomb and found everything just as the women had said, but they did not find a Body in the tomb.”

He said to them, “How dull you are, how slow of understanding! Is the message of the prophets too difficult for you to understand? Is it not written that the Christ should suffer all this, and then enter His glory?” Then starting with Moses, and going through the prophets, He explained to them everything in the Scriptures concerning Himself.

As they drew near the village they were heading for, Jesus made as if to go farther. But they prevailed upon Him, “Stay with us, for night comes quickly. The day is now almost over.” So He went in to stay with them. When they were at table, He took the bread, said a blessing, broke it, and gave each a piece.

Then their eyes were opened, and they recognised Him; but He vanished out of their sight. And they said to one another, “Were not our hearts filled with ardent yearning when He was talking to us on the road and explaining the Scriptures?” They immediately set out and returned to Jerusalem.

There they found the Eleven and their companions gathered together. They were greeted by these words : “Yes, it is true, the Lord is risen! He has appeared to Simon!” Then the two told what had happened on the road to Emmaus, and how Jesus had made Himself known, when He broke bread with them.

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Wednesday, 3 April 2024 : Wednesday within Easter Octave (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 104 : 1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8-9

Give thanks to YHVH, call on His Name; make known His works among the nations. Sing to Him, sing His praise, proclaim all His wondrous deeds.

Glory in His holy Name; let those who seek YHVH rejoice. Look to YHVH and be strong; seek His face always.

You descendants of His servant Abraham, you sons of Jacob, His chosen ones! He is YHVH our God; His judgments reach the whole world.

He remembers His Covenant forever, His promise to a thousand generations, the Covenant He made with Abraham, the promise He swore to Isaac.

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Wednesday, 3 April 2024 : Wednesday within Easter Octave (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 3 : 1-10

Once when Peter and John were going up to the Temple at three in the afternoon, the hour for prayer, a man crippled from birth was being carried in. Every day they would bring him and put him at the Temple gate called “Beautiful”; there he begged from those who entered the Temple.

When he saw Peter and John on their way into the Temple, he asked for alms. Then Peter with John at his side looked straight at him and said, “Look at us.” So he looked at them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have neither silver nor gold, but what I have I give you : In the Name of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, walk!”

Then he took the beggar by his right hand and helped him up. At once his feet and ankles became firm, and jumping up he stood on his feet and began to walk. And he went with them into the Temple walking and leaping and praising God. All the people saw him walking and praising God; they recognised him as the one who used to sit begging at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, and they were all astonished and amazed at what had happened to him.

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Tuesday, 2 April 2024 : Tuesday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord in the Scriptures we are reminded yet again this Easter season that all of us as Christians are called to be worthy and genuine witnesses of the Risen Lord, in proclaiming the truth about Him and His Resurrection and everything that He had done for the sake of the salvation of the whole world. All of us are called and reminded to be the ones to proclaim the Good News of the Lord’s salvation which He has willingly and generously offered to all of us through His Passion, namely His suffering and death, and ultimately through His glorious Resurrection. As Christians we have to be genuine in our actions, words and deeds so that everyone who witness us all will come to know of the Lord and His salvation through us and our exemplary lives.

In our first reading today, we heard the continuation from the account of the Acts of the Apostles in which St. Peter the Apostle spoke to the assembled people coming from various countries, the Jewish diaspora population and other visitors who came to Jerusalem to attend the Festival of the Pentecost. Prior to this event, the disciples had been in hiding, being afraid of the repercussions and the persecutions from the Jewish authorities and the many people who opposed the Lord and His efforts, those who had persecuted Him and condemned Him to death, crucified Him and henceforth continued to resist, refusing to believe that the Lord Jesus had indeed risen from the dead. They were afraid because those same authorities had attempted to silence them and spread their own version of events, claiming that the disciples of the Lord stole His Body from His tomb and hid the Body.

But with the strength of the Holy Spirit, the encouragement and wisdom that they had received, the Lord’s Apostles and disciples had received the encouragement and the drive they needed to go forth without fear anymore, to testify before everyone what they themselves had seen and witnessed, in all the glorious things that they had experienced in the presence of the Resurrected Lord, Who had overcome death itself, and showed them all His Divine and Risen glory, no longer hidden from them as before His Passion, suffering and death. They had also witnessed how the Lord ascended into Heaven in glory, and promised to them that He will one day return at the end of time, and not before sending them out, commissioning them and entrusting them with the important mission of going forth to the whole world and to proclaim His Good News, baptising all the people in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

It is what St. Peter therefore had shown us all, in his courageous stand for the Risen Lord, for all that He had shown His disciples, and thus, in the message which St. Peter proclaimed to the people, convincing so many among those people, astounded by their words and wisdom, and many of them able to understand the words of the Apostles because of the gift of tongues that the Holy Spirit had given them. We heard how three thousand people gave themselves to be baptised on that day, and that marked the beginning of the public face of the Church, which was unveiled to the whole world on Pentecost. This also reminds us all of the important mission and calling that we ourselves have as Christians, to be God’s faithful disciples and followers, and to do His will in all opportunities, as much as possible.

Then in today’s Gospel passage, we heard from another account of the appearance of the Risen Lord to His disciples, and this time it was the appearance of the Lord to Mary Magdalene, one of His closest disciples, who was distraught outside the tomb of the Lord, having discovered that His Body had gone missing from the tomb. She was desperate and lost, and did not know what to do, although the Angels of God at the tomb on Easter Sunday morning had told her and the other women with her that the Lord had indeed risen from the dead as He Himself had predicted it earlier. It was there then that the Lord appeared to her, while initially she did not recognise Him. Eventually, Mary Magdalene recognised the Lord when He revealed Himself to her, and told her to proclaim His message to all of His disciples.

Through what we have received in today’s Scripture readings, we are all reminded that each and every one of us as Christians must always put our faith and trust in the Lord, remembering everything that He had done for our sake, in His Passion, suffering and death on the Cross, that He has brought unto us the hope of everlasting life and salvation, liberation from the tyranny and dominion of sin and death. By His Resurrection, He has shown and reminded all of us that sin and death do not have the power or the say over us any more, and as long as we adhere closely to Him, following everything which He had done, we shall have no need to fear about anything. We may face hardships and persecutions, trials and oppressions like the Lord and His disciples themselves had faced, but we are reassured of triumph and victory with God in the end.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all therefore come together today to commemorate the glorious celebrations of Easter, which still continues on until the Solemnity of the Pentecost, let us all hence remind ourselves of our calling and mission as Christians, to be truly faithful and committed to the Lord, in all of our way of life, our every words, actions and deeds. We have to strive to live our every moments in life in service to God, in doing His will and in being truly worthy of Him, as best as we can so that by our lives we may indeed be good inspiration and role models for our fellow brothers and sisters around us. We should always be committed to live our lives in the manner that God has shown us so that our lives may truly proclaim our Risen Lord to all.

Let us remember that through our baptism we have been made parts of the Church, the one united Body of Christ. And as part of what we have been entrusted to do, we are to go forth to proclaim the Lord to all the people of all the nations, and we can do this in our own small little ways, in each and every moments of our lives, by carrying out our duties and responsibilities faithfully as Christians in even the smallest things we do, and in our every interactions with our brothers and sisters around us. May the Risen Lord continue to bless us all and guide us, and may He give us the strength and courage to proclaim His Resurrection, truth and Good News like His Apostles and disciples. Amen.

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Tuesday, 2 April 2024 : Tuesday within Easter Octave (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 20 : 11-18

At that time, Mary stood weeping outside the tomb; and as she wept, she bent down to look inside. She saw two Angels in white, sitting where the Body of Jesus had been, one at the head, and the other at the feet. They said, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She answered, “Because they have taken my Lord and I do not know where they have put Him.” As she said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not recognise Him. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?”

She thought it was the gardener and answered Him, “Lord, if You have taken Him away, tell me where You have put Him, and I will go and remove Him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned, and said to Him, “Rabboni!” – which means Master. Jesus said to her, “Do not touch Me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to My brothers and say to them : I am ascending to My Father, Who is your Father, to My God, Who is your God.”

So Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord, and this is what He said to me.”

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Tuesday, 2 April 2024 : Tuesday within Easter Octave (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 32 : 4-5, 18-19, 20 and 22

For upright is the Lord’s word and worthy of trust is His work. The Lord loves justice and righteousness; the earth is full of His kindness.

But the Lord’s eyes are upon those who fear Him, upon those who trust in His loving-kindness to deliver them from death and preserve them from famine.

In hope we wait for the Lord for He is our help and our shield. O Lord, let Your love rest upon us, even as our hope rests in You.

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Tuesday, 2 April 2024 : Tuesday within Easter Octave (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 2 : 36-41

Peter said, “Let Israel then know for sure that God has made Lord and Christ this Jesus Whom you crucified.” When they heard this, they were deeply troubled. And they asked Peter and the other Apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?”

Peter answered : “Each of you must repent and be baptised in the Name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise of God was made to you and your children, and to all those from afar whom our God may call.”

With many other words Peter gave the message and appealed to them saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who accepted his word were baptised; some three thousand persons were added to their numbers that day.

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Monday, 1 April 2024 : Monday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we continue with the glorious celebration of Easter, we are all reminded of the truth of the Lord’s Resurrection which He has shown to all of His Apostles and disciples who have witnessed all the events and things that happened at that time, when the Lord Who have died on the Cross and was buried, rose in glory, appearing in all of His Risen wonder and brilliance, having conquered and sin and death, proving to every one of us that sin and death do not have the final say over us. He has triumphed through His Holy Cross, and what was known as the symbol of the ultimate punishment and humiliation has become the instrument of salvation and liberation for all mankind, and also the sign of ultimate Hope and Victory, which He has brought unto us, and we have received the assurance of this triumph and victory.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which St. Peter the Apostle stood firmly before all the people assembled in Jerusalem during the time of the Festival of the Pentecost, when many people came to Jerusalem from all over the Jewish diaspora, together with many other visitors, all of whom were astonished at the great wisdom and courage showed by the Apostles and the other disciples, who have received the Holy Spirit descending upon them, giving them the strength and the wisdom to speak out their minds, with the Divine guidance and providence, proclaiming everything that they themselves had witnessed about the Risen Lord, the glorious Resurrection of the Saviour, as well as everything that He had done in this world, His mission and how He has called on all the whole world to follow Him.

That was how St. Peter the Apostle spoke with such great fire in him, proclaiming all that the Lord had done in reaching out to His beloved people, in gathering all of them once again from being scattered all over the whole world, only for Him to face opposition, ridicule, rejection and stubborn refusal by so many who refused to listen to Him, or to believe in His truth and wisdom, in all that He has done and shown to them. St. Peter spoke courageously amidst the people about the suffering, all the things that this Saviour has suffered and endured during His Passion, the moment when He had to face a lot of hardships, trials, humiliations, and ultimately faced the punishment for the sins and mistakes which He Himself had not committed, but which He willingly took upon Himself, so that by His loving and most selfless sacrifice and offering of Himself, He has become the source of our salvation and redemption.

God has sent His Son to us all, so that by His coming into this world, and by everything that He has done, in obeying His Father’s will and in offering His most perfect and worthy offering, His actions had broken us all free from the prison of sin, evil and death. No longer that sin and death have any more power over us, although they can still harm us if we choose to stay away from God and reject His love. His glorious Resurrection is like a great Light that illuminates our path in the darkness of this world, piercing through the veil that sin has placed before us, that now we all can see the truth and the salvation which God has been promising us, and we have this Hope placed in us, knowing that if we remain true and faithful to Him, then in the end, we shall share in His glory and triumph, and enter into the eternal and glorious inheritance promised to us.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the account in the Gospel of St. Matthew of the appearance of the Lord Jesus after His Resurrection to some of His followers, the women of the group, whom He told that they should tell His other disciples to find Him in Galilee just as He Himself has told them. We then also heard how the opponents of the Lord made many efforts to try to stop the truth about the Lord’s Resurrection and His disappeared Body which had made quite a ruckus among the people, even to the point of making bribes and false, made-up stories about what happened, in order to try to sway the populace to belief in their version of the story, saying that the disciples of the Lord had stolen His Body, while the truth was that the Lord has indeed risen gloriously from the dead. They tried in vain to stop the truth from spreading, even so far as to persecute the Lord’s disciples and ordering them not to proclaim the Resurrection, to no avail.

That was because the disciples of the Lord themselves had seen the Risen Lord, experienced His Presence and everything that He has done and spoken to them, and through the courage and strength that God had provided to them, He has helped all of them to remain true and strong in their faith, and in their commitment to walk the path that He has called all of them to follow. The Risen Lord has commissioned them all to go forth and proclaim the Good News to all the whole world, to all the people who have been called to His love and compassion, to spread to them more of the truth about everything, and this same mission has also been entrusted to us all as members and parts of God’s Church. It is important that each and every one of us as Christians realise this calling and the mission which we have been entrusted with so that we can do our best to fulfil everything that we are all supposed to do.

As Christians, this Easter time and season is a reminder for all of us to go forth and be active in doing what God had called us to do, to be His worthy disciples and great role models, inspirations and strength for everyone around us so that by our every actions, words and deeds, by everything that we say and do, in every moments and opportunities, even in the smallest things, we will be the shining beacons of God’s Light and truth, His love and kindness towards us, being good inspiration and strength for all our fellow brethren who may still be struggling in their faith and in their willingness to follow the Lord in all that He has entrusted to them in their own various ways. Let us all be their pillars of support and strength, helping each other to carry out God’s will and mission, at all times and opportunities, as courageous and faithful servants and followers of the Risen Lord.

May the Risen Lord, Our Saviour, continue to bless us all and guide us in all of our journey throughout life. May He empower and strengthen each and every one of us in our struggles and in our efforts to follow Him, despite all the challenges, trials and hardships that may come our way. We must not easily lose hope and we have to remain firmly focused on the Lord, entrusting ourselves to Him, and believing in everything that He Himself has shown us, that in the end, we shall be raised together with Him into an everlasting existence with Him, in true bliss, joy and glory. May God be with us always, now and forevermore. Amen.