Episodes
Friday Nov 29, 2019
December 1 - First Sunday in Advent : Be awake and be Prepared
Friday Nov 29, 2019
Friday Nov 29, 2019
First Reading Isaiah 2:1-5
Isaiah describes his vision in which all nations are gathered together by God in peace.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 122:1-2,3-4,4-5,6-7,8-9
Rejoicing, let us enter the house of the Lord.
Second Reading Romans 13:11-14
Be prepared, salvation is near.
Gospel Reading
Matthew 24:37-44
Today we begin a new season of Advent and it is its 1st Sunday. Now, in the general literal sense, the word 'advent' means 'coming of someone,' but in the Christian Liturgical sense it specifically implies to 'the coming of Christ.' So specifically therefore, with the start of Advent today, we begin the period of expectation and waiting for the coming of Christ, our Savior — his birth on the first Christmas day. But actually, the Lord comes to us in three ways: the first coming of Jesus about 2000 years ago when he came as our Savior (Coming in history), the second coming is the glorious return of Jesus in future at the end of time (Coming in Majesty) and the third coming is situated between the first two comings. It is Jesus' daily coming into our hearts here and now at every moment of every day in the sacraments – very specifically through the Eucharist, and therein lies a challenge for us as well as a comfort (Coming in Mystery). Thus in a general sense, the period of Advent encompasses all time viz. Past, Present & Future. So, a Christian in this sense is always a citizen of Advent. Therefore, it is not surprising that we begin the new Liturgical Year this Sunday, with the same theme of 'the coming of Christ', where we ended it last Sunday.
Thursday Nov 21, 2019
November 24 - Solemnity of Christ the King : " Thy kingdom come!"
Thursday Nov 21, 2019
Thursday Nov 21, 2019
First Reading 2 Samuel 5:1-3
David is anointed king.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 122:1-2,3-4,4-5
Enter the house of the Lord rejoicing.
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Second Reading Colossians 1:12-20
Hymn to Jesus as the first-born of all creation.
Gospel Reading
Luke 23:35-43
Today, the last Sunday of ordinary time the Church in a special way invites us to celebrate Jesus Christ our anointed king who overcame suffering and death, and so brought us out of darkness into his kingdom of light. On 7th July 2009, during the funeral of Michael Jackson, the presiding pastor said: “Behold the king of pop ready to face the King of the world.” Today (34th Sunday), the entire world stands still and bows to the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Rev 17, 14), and the Holy Mother Church celebrates the feast of Christ the King and Sovereign ruler of the Universe (Dan 7, 14). Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925 in response to growing nationalism and secularism. In initiating this feast, the Church wanted to take our worship of Jesus from the privacy of our hearts and to proudly proclaim his public reign as well. The title of the feast was “Jesu Christi Regis” (Our Lord Jesus Christ the King). Again, in his 1969 motu proprio Mysterii Paschalis, Pope Paul VI gave the celebration a new title: “Iesu Christi universorum Regis” (Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the Universe). He also gave it a new date: the last Sunday in the liturgical year and assigned to it the highest rank, that of “Solemnity.” As we celebrate this feast let us ask ourselves: “Who reigns in my heart? Jesus or the evil one? Am I happy to be a subject of His kingdom? What are the values of his kingdom that I admire and try to inculcate into my life?
Thursday Nov 14, 2019
Thursday Nov 14, 2019
First Reading Malachi 3:19-20
The day of justice is coming, says the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 98:5-6,7-8,9
Sing praise to God, who rules with justice.
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12
Paul urges the community to follow his example and to earn their keep.
Gospel Reading
Luke 21:5-19
In today’s Gospel Jesus portrays for us, graphically, the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. For Jews, the destruction of these two things was equivalent to the end of the world. Precisely for this reason, the Church uses this gospel passage as one of its readings for the end of the liturgical year. It wants us to reflect on the end of the world. But what’s the significant it has in our lives? What does it mean to us personally? We read the Gospel of Matthew that Jesus, before His prediction of the destruction of the Temple, ‘left the Temple and departed from it’ (24:1). Jesus not only went out of the Temple, He also departed from it and never returned to it. He did not depart on His own accord, they drove Him off; He did not reject them, rather they had rejected Him. When He departed from the Temple, its sanctity, glory and defense departed. The most beautiful and magnificent Temple in the world turned into the most ruinous heap. Three days after He departed the veil of the Temple was rent – making everything in the Temple common and unclean. Woe descends upon anyone from whom the Lord departs. If we drive away His presence from our souls, it will become desolate, as desolate as the Temple of Jerusalem. That will be the end of the world to us. When Jesus departs from my life, that is going to be my experience of the end of the world.
Friday Nov 08, 2019
November 10 – Thirty second Sunday in Ordinary Time : Heaven is our Home
Friday Nov 08, 2019
Friday Nov 08, 2019
First Reading 2 Maccabees 7:1-2,9-14
Jewish martyrs give witness to their faith, even unto death.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 17:1,5-6,8,15
The just person will live in God's presence.
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 2:16—3:5
Paul encourages the Thessalonians and asks for their prayers.
Gospel Reading
Luke 20:27-38
In today’s Gospel we find Jesus in reply rejecting the caricature that the Sadducees present of heaven, a caricature that suggests that it is a simple continuation of the earthly relationships of the spouses. Eternal beatitude is not just an increase and prolongation of terrestrial joys, the maximization of the pleasures of the flesh and the table. The other life is truly another life, a life of a different quality. It is true that it is the fulfillment of all man's longings on earth, yet it is infinitely more, on a different level. Interpreting Jesus' answer to the Sadducees, in an erroneous way, some have claimed that marriage has no follow-up in heaven. He does not deny that they might rediscover in God the bond that united them on earth. If God united them on earth, how could he divide them in heaven? According to this vision, matrimony does not entirely end with death but is transfigured, renewed and made holy -- it loses those limits that mark life on earth -- in the same way that the bonds between parents and children or between friends will not be forgotten. In the preface of the Mass for the dead, the liturgy says that with death "life is changed, not taken away"; the same must be said of marriage, which is an integral part of life. Let us look forward to a glorious life in heaven.
Saturday Nov 02, 2019
November 3 – Thirty First Sunday in Ordinary Time : Zacchaeus’Transformation
Saturday Nov 02, 2019
Saturday Nov 02, 2019
First Reading Wisdom 11:22—12:2
God is merciful because all things were created by God.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 145:1-2,8-9,10-11,13,14
Sing praise to God, who is faithful.
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 1:11—2:2
Paul tells the Thessalonians to remain faithful to Christ until Christ comes again.
Gospel Reading
Luke 19:1-10
In the figure of Zacchaeus in today’s Gospel, we have a portrait of a lost soul. He is a chief tax collector, a rich man who has apparently gained his living by fraud by profession and so a“sinner” excluded from Israel’s religious life. But Zacchaeus’ faith & humility bring salvation to his house. He expresses his faith in his fervent desire to “see” Jesus, even humbling himself to climb a tree just to watch Him pass by. While those of loftier religious stature react to Jesus with grumbling, Zacchaeus receives Him with joy. Beneath the loving gaze of Christ, the heart of Zacchaeus warms to love of neighbour. From a feeling of isolation, which had led him to enrich himself without caring about what others had to suffer, he moves to an attitude of sharing. In another passage of the Gospel Jesus states that it is very difficult for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven (cf. Matthew 19:23). In the case of Zacchaeus we see that precisely what seems impossible actually happens: "He," St. Jerome comments, "gave away his wealth and immediately replaced it with the wealth of the Kingdom of Heaven" (Homily on Psalm 83:3). And Maximus of Turin adds: "Riches, for the foolish, feed dishonesty, but for the wise they are a help to virtue; for the latter they offer a chance of salvation, for the former they procure a stumbling block and perdition" (Sermon 95). And it is only at this point that the love of God achieves its purpose, and salvation is accomplished: 'Today salvation has come to this house' (v 9)."
Saturday Oct 26, 2019
October 27 : Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - The Prayer of the Humble Man
Saturday Oct 26, 2019
Saturday Oct 26, 2019
First Reading Sirach 35:12-14,16-18
God hears the prayer of the poor.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 34:2-3,17-18,19, 23
The Lord hears and answers the cry of the poor.
Second Reading 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18
Paul perseveres in faith, confident that God will rescue him.
Gospel Reading
Luke 18:9-14
Jesus draws a blunt picture in today’s Gospel. The Pharisee’s prayer is almost a parody of the thanksgiving psalms (see for example Psalms 30,118). Instead of praising God for His mighty works, the Pharisee congratulates himself for his own deeds, which he presents to God in some detail. The tax collector stands at a distance, too ashamed even to raise his eyes to God (see Ezra 9:6). He prays with a humble and contrite heart (see Psalm 51:19). He knows that before God no one is righteous, no one has cause to boast (see Roman 3:10; 4:2). We see in the Liturgy today one of Scripture’s abiding themes - that God “knows no favorites,” as today’s First Reading tells us (see 2 Chronicles 19:7; Acts 10:34-35; Romans 2:11). God cannot be bribed (see Deuteronomy 10:17). We cannot curry favor with Him or impress Him - even with our good deeds or our faithful observance of religious duties such as tithing and fasting. If we try to exalt ourselves before the Lord, as the Pharisee does, we will be brought low (see Luke 1:52). This should be a warning to us - not to take pride in our piety, not to slip into the self-righteousness of thinking that we’re better than others, that we’re “not like the rest of sinful humanity.” If we clothe ourselves with humility (see 1 Peter 5:5-6) - recognize that all of us are sinners in need of His mercy - we will be exalted (see Proverbs 29:33). The prayer of the lowly, the humble, pierces the clouds. Paul testifies to this in today’s Epistle, as He thanks the Lord for giving him strength during his imprisonment. Paul tells us what the Psalmist sings today - that the Lord redeems the lives of His humble servants. We too must serve Him willingly. And He will hear us in our distress, deliver us from evil, and bring us safely to His heavenly kingdom.
Wednesday Oct 16, 2019
October 20 - Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Persistent Widow
Wednesday Oct 16, 2019
Wednesday Oct 16, 2019
First Reading Exodus 17:8-13
Joshua and the Israelites defeat Amalek with the help of God and his servant, Moses.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 121:1-2,3-4,5-6,7-8
The Lord is the Guardian of Israel.
Second Reading 2 Timothy 3:14—4:2
Paul exhorts Timothy to continue to preach the word Timothy received from his teachers.
Gospel Reading
Luke 18:1-8
The Lord is our guardian, beside us at our right hand, interceding for us in all our spiritual battles. In today’s Psalm we’re told to lift our eyes to the mountains, that our help will come from Mount Zion and the Temple - the dwelling of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Joshua and the Israelites, in today’s First Reading, are also told to look to the hilltops. They are to find their help there - through the intercession of Moses - as they defend themselves against their mortal foes, the Amalekites. Notice the image: Aaron and Hur standing on each side of Moses, holding his weary arms so that he can raise the staff of God above his head. Moses is being shown here as a figure of Jesus, who also climbed a hilltop, and on Mount Calvary stretched out His hands between heaven and earth to intercede for us against the final enemy - sin and death (see 1 Corinthians 15:26). By the staff of God, Moses bested Israel’s enemies (see Exodus 7:8-12;8:1-2), parted the Red Sea (see Exodus 14:16) and brought water from the Rock (see Exodus 17:6). The Cross of Jesus is the new staff of God, bringing about a new liberation from sin, bringing forth living waters from the body of Christ, the new Temple of God (see John 2:19-21; 7:37-39; 19:34; 1 Corinthians 10:4). Like the Israelites and the widow in today’s Gospel, we face opposition and injustice - at times from godless and pitiless adversaries. We, too, must lift our eyes to the mountains - to Calvary and the God who will guard us from all evil. We must pray always (persevere in prayer) and not be wearied by our trials, Jesus tells us today. As Paul exhorts in today’s Epistle, we need to remain faithful, to turn to the inspired Scriptures - given by God to train us in righteousness. We must persist, so that when the Son of Man comes again in kingly power, He will indeed find faith on earth.
Friday Oct 11, 2019
Friday Oct 11, 2019
First Reading 2 Kings 5:14-17
Naaman is cleansed of his leprosy and chooses to serve the God of Israel.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 98:1,2-3,3-4
Rejoice! The salvation of God is made known to all.
Second Reading 2 Timothy 2:8-13
Those who remain faithful to Christ will share Christ's glory.
Gospel Reading
Luke 17:11-19
Today's readings are about remembering and thanksgiving, healing and salvation. In the Old Testament reading, (Second Kings 5:14-17) Naaman the Syrian remembers to thank Elisha for his cure, and one of the 10 lepers cured by Jesus remembered to turn up and thank his healer. It is the foreigner who returns, who praises God and who expresses gratitude to Jesus. When Jesus says: “Your faith has made you well," the blessing certainly refers to some benefit other than that which all, including the other nine, had received earlier. The verb “made well” is the same very often translated “to be saved.” The stories of the lepers teach us some powerful lessons about remembrance, gratitude, healing and salvation. Grateful hearts are the hallmark of authentic Christians. Those who possess the virtue of gratitude are truly rich. They not only know how richly they have been blessed, but they continuously remember that all good things come from God. There is an old saying: Justice is when you get what you deserve. Mercy is when you don’t get what you deserve. Grace is when you get what you don’t deserve. I like you get asked a dozen times a day, “How are you doing?” I have trained myself to often answer, “More blessed than I deserve.” Yes, All is gift. Thankful people store up in their grateful memory all the good experiences of the past, just as the French proverb states: “Gratitude is the heart’s memory.”
Thursday Oct 03, 2019
October 6 : 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Faith as a mustered seed
Thursday Oct 03, 2019
Thursday Oct 03, 2019
First Reading Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4
The patience of the just man shall be rewarded when he sees the vision fulfilled.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 95:1-2,6-7,8-9
Sing joyfully to God, our salvation.
Second Reading 2 Timothy 1:6-8,13-14
Paul urges Timothy to remain strong in the Spirit of faith Timothy received.
Gospel Reading
Luke 17:5-10
The power of our faith doesn't depend on its quantity but its quality; It seems to me that this is why, when the apostles said increase our faith, Jesus took them immediately out of the area of quantity, and brought them to the smallest seed he could think of, the mustard seed. Jesus could have said, for example: If your faith were the size of a grain of sand, or a speck of dust, but the point of the comparison with the mustard seed is that it is living; it has a living power which a grain of sand does not. Just as a small weed can split a slab of concrete, or a mustard seed can produce a huge tree in which the birds of the air find shelter, so the living power of faith can move mountains. The secret of the living power which faith has is that it is built on the living word of God. Faith, trust and deep commitment to the wonderful things that God does through the strangeness of his ways, are the basis of the Christian life. Through a deep and trusting acceptance of the goodness, yet strangeness of God’s ways, revealed to us through the loving gift of His Son, we can make sense of our lives. We, who have received this gift of living faith in God’s Word, have a responsibility for its growth in us, or more precisely, we have a responsibility to grow in this gift of faith.
Friday Sep 27, 2019
Friday Sep 27, 2019
First Reading Amos 6:1,4-7
God will judge the complacency of the people and their leaders.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 146:7-10
Happy are those who find solace in God, the help of the poor.
Second Reading 1 Timothy 6:11-16
Paul exhorts Timothy to stay faithful to God in all things.
Gospel Reading
Luke 16:19-31
The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus has left Bible readers wondering why the rich man had to go to hell. We are not told he acquired his wealth by foul means or that he was responsible for the poverty and misery of Lazarus or that he committed any crime or evil deed. He went to hell not for the things he did but for the things he didn't do. We often think that we sin by doing what we are not supposed to do -by thought, word and deed (i.e. the sin of commission). Today’s parable reminds us that the sin of omission can land someone in hell. The poor man Lazarus was lying at his gate. And the rich man simply couldn't care less. Of course he did nothing against Lazarus. But he has failed to do a good deed, failed to reach out and share a little of his blessings with someone in need. His sin is that of omission, and for that he was going to roast in hell.
Another problem we have with this parable is why Lazarus went to heaven. This is the only parable of Jesus where the character in the story has a name. So the name must be significant for interpreting the parable. The name “Lazarus” means “God is my help.” Lazarus, therefore, is not just a poor man, but a poor man who believes and trusts in God, which opens the gates of heaven to him.
The good news of this parable is this: If you feel like a Lazarus right now, battered by sickness, poverty and pain, forgotten by society and by those whom God has blessed in this life, continue believing and trusting in God knowing that it will be well with your soul in the end. If you see yourself as one of those blessed by God with the good things of life, open your door and see. Probably there is a Lazarus lying at your gates and you have not taken notice.
These readings remind us that the law of love (see John 15:12; Romans 13:8) means that each of us in some way will be judged by the mercy we show to the poor. As the rich man learns in the parable of Lazarus - the distance between ourselves and God in the next life may be the distance we put between ourselves and the poor in this life (see Matthew 25:31-46; James 2:8,14-17).
Friday Sep 20, 2019
Friday Sep 20, 2019
First Reading Amos 8:4-7
Unfair business practices and injustice to the poor will be judged by God.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 113: 1-2,4-6,7-8
Praise be to God, who raises up the poor.
Second Reading
1 Timothy 2:1-8 : Paul tells Timothy that prayer for those in authority is pleasing to God because God wills the salvation of all.
Gospel Reading
Luke 16:1-13 (shorter form, Luke 16:10-13)
In today’s Gospel, Jesus relates the parable of the Unjust Steward. It’s a very tricky parable. The steward was a rogue, who dishonestly reduced the quantum of debts of his master’s tenants, but the master praised his cleverness. The master praised not his dishonesty, but his foresight, prudence and astuteness. We can learn a lot of lessons for our spiritual life from the way men behave and organize their worldly affairs. We should not adopt their goals, but we can profitably use their methods for our spiritual well being. We should hate their ends, but we must love to adopt their methods. The children of this world may be wise but their wisdom pertains only to this passing world. Though this worldly wealth is not to be trusted for our happiness, it could be used as subservient to our pursuit of our happiness in the other world. Now is the only time we have got to make good use of our gifts, talents and possession to gain heaven.
Saturday Sep 14, 2019
September 11 – Twenty Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Joyful Finding
Saturday Sep 14, 2019
Saturday Sep 14, 2019
First Reading Exodus 32:7-11,13-14
Moses stands up to God, recalling all of God's great promises.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 51:3-4,12-13,17,19
Once we are forgiven, we can hope for a new heart and a fresh start.
Second Reading 1 Timothy 1:12-17
Paul proves it's never too late to repent and serve God.
Gospel Reading
Luke 15:1-32
The words of the father in the story, to the sulking elder brother, are filled with the pathos of Jesus’ appeal: ‘My son, you are with me always and all I have is yours’. The‘best robe’, the ‘ring’, the ‘sandals’ and the ‘feast’, all marks of special regard, point to a mercy and generosity that have no limits. We are left to imagine the aftermath. Surely, the son’s life is transformed, as he comes, at last, to share in the love in the heart of his father. The future the Saviour promises to the world, in fact, will be a sharing in the love of his Father (cf. John 14:25 etc). The merciful, loving heart of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is the merciful, loving heart of God our heavenly Father. His mercy tirelessly seeks out each sinner and should the sinner respond there is delirious happiness and rejoicing in the whole court of heaven. To every sinner in the state of mortal sin I say as simply as I can, ‘Your sin is not the big deal you think it is; the big deal is your return to the merciful love of God. Trust in his mercy, not in your sin. And if you continue to sin, continue to trust and to return to his mercy.
Thursday Sep 05, 2019
September 8 - Twenty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time : Hating our own life
Thursday Sep 05, 2019
Thursday Sep 05, 2019
First Reading Sirach 3:17-18,20,28-29
Humble yourself and you will find favor with God
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 68:4-7,10-11
The just rejoice and exult before God.
Second Reading Hebrews 12:18-19,22-24
You have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
Gospel Reading
Luke 14:1,7-14
We have yet to comment on the phrase “hating our own life”. This is just an extension of the earlier part. Jesus wants our lives to be lived in total truth and love. Our lives are not to be determined and manipulated by attachments, desires, ambitions or fears and anxieties which can become very much part of ourselves. We are to live in total freedom. “None of you can be my disciples unless he gives up all his possessions.” It is the ability to let go, even of health and life itself. Any aspect of a person or anything that lessens that freedom to follow truth and love is to be “hated” and transcended. Today's teachings are addressed to people who have not yet made the option for discipleship but are considering it. It reminds Luke's Christian readers of the choice they have already undertaken.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
September 01 - Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time : Take the Lower Place
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Isaiah 66:18-21
Nations of every language shall come to see my glory.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 117:1-2
Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Second Reading Hebrews 12:5-7,11-13
Whom the Lord loves, he disciplines.
Gospel Reading
Luke 13:22-30
In the Gospel of Luke today we also hear Jesus talking about humility. Our Gospel acclamation today says “I am meek and gentle of heart.” Indeed this quality of humility is one for which Jesus is very much a role model. We often talk about how Jesus lowered himself to become like us – a God becoming a man! How much more humble could he be? So when Jesus talks about humility we know that he is “walking the talk”! This idea is actually a theme in Luke, and it is the same theme that we read in the first reading: The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will find favor in the sight of the Lord. Luke started this theme in the first chapter with the beautiful Magnificat of Mary we heard two weeks ago: He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent away empty. He will end it with Jesus at the Last supper taking on the role of servant.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Isaiah 66:18-21
Nations of every language shall come to see my glory.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 117:1-2
Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Second Reading Hebrews 12:5-7,11-13
Whom the Lord loves, he disciplines.
Gospel Reading
Luke 13:22-30
“The gate to perdition is the devil, through whom we enter into hell; the gate of life is Christ, through whom we enter into the kingdom of Heaven. The Devil is said to be a wide gate, not extended by the mightiness of his power, but made broad by the license of his unbridled pride. Christ said to be a strait Gate not with respect to smallness of power, but to His humility; for He whom the whole world contains not, shut Himself within the limits of the Virgin’s womb” (St. John Chrysostom).
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
August 18 : The Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady into Heaven – Crown of Glory
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her earthly life is a defined dogma of the Catholic Church. On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII, exercising papal infallibility, declared in "Munificentissimus Deus" that it is a dogma of the Church "that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory." As a dogma, the Assumption is a required belief of all Catholics; anyone who publicly dissents from the dogma, Pope Pius declared, "has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith." The "Magnificat," which we find in Luke's Gospel, indicates that the praise of the Holy Virgin, the Mother of God, intimately united to Christ her son, regards the Church of all times and places. The evangelist's report of these words presupposes that the glorification of Mary was already present at that time and that he saw it as a duty and task of the Christian community for all generations. Mary's words tell us that it is a duty of the Church to recall Our Lady's greatness in faith. This solemnity is, then, an invitation to praise God and to look to Our Lady's greatness since we know who God is by gazing about the faces of those who are His.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
August 11 - Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Being Faithful & Being Prepared
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Wisdom 18:6-9
The Hebrew people awaited the salvation of the just.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 33:1,12,18-22
Happy the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Second Reading Hebrews 11:1-2,8-19
We will look for the city designed and built by God.
Gospel Reading
Luke 12:32-48
Today the Gospel speaks to us -as the first theme- of the need to be prepared since our God is a God who comes, a God who visits us. He can come to us in many ways. For example through the Sacraments, through the Word of God, through the Priest, through the Community gathered for worship, through the poor, the sick and the lowly, He could come and speak to us through our live events and experiences etc etc. Are we ready to welcome him in all these modes of his coming? The second theme for today speaks to us the need to be faithful at all times. Thus Mother Theresa of Calcutta would say : "God did not call us to be successful, but to be faithful." It is not what we do that matters at the end but how far we have been faithful to Him and His Gospel. Let us ask God for the grace to be prepared all the time to welcome Him and that we be faithful we He calls us.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
August 4 - Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time: The Fool’s Vanity
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Trust in God - as the Rock of our salvation, as the Lord who made us His chosen people, as our shepherd and guide. This should be the mark of our following of Jesus. We can harden our hearts in ways more subtle but no less ruinous. We can put our trust in possessions, squabble over earthly inheritances, kid ourselves that what we have we deserve, store up treasures and think they’ll afford us security, rest. All this is “vanity of vanities,” a false and deadly way of living, as this week’s First Reading tells us. This is the greed that Jesus warns against in this week’s Gospel. The rich man’s anxiety and toil expose his lack of faith in God’s care and provision. That’s why Paul calls greed “idolatry” in the Epistle this week. Mistaking having for being, possession for existence, we forget that God is the giver of all that we have, we exalt the things we can make or buy over our Maker (see Romans 1:25). Jesus calls the rich man a “fool” - a word used in the Old Testament for someone who rebels against God or has forgotten Him (see Psalm 14:1). We should treasure most the new life we have been given in Christ and seek what is above, the promised inheritance of heaven. We have to see all things in the light of eternity, mindful that He who gives us the breath of life could at any moment - this night even - demand it back from us.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
July 28 - Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Asked and Answered
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Genesis 18:20-32
Abraham pleads with God to save the innocent people of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 138:1-3,6-8
Lord, on the day I cried for help, you answered me.
Second Reading Colossians 2:12-14
You were buried with Christ in Baptism and also raised with him.
Gospel Reading
Luke 11:1-13
Though we be “but dust and ashes,” we can presume to draw near and speak boldly to our Lord, as Abraham dares in this week’s First Reading. The mystery of prayer, as Jesus reveals to His disciples in this week’s Gospel, is the living relationship of beloved sons and daughters with their heavenly Father. Our prayer is pure gift, made possible by the “good gift” of the Father - the Holy Spirit of His Son. It is the fruit of the New Covenant by which we are made children of God in Christ Jesus (see Galatians 4:6-7; Romans 8:15-16). Jesus teaches His disciples to persist in their prayer, as Abraham persisted in begging God’s mercy for the innocent of Sodom and Gomorrah. This intriguing story of Abraham interceding for Sodom is not really about a numbers game but about the significance of salvation for the righteous in a corrupt community. Authentic prayer opens us up to the action of God's Spirit, bringing us in line with God's desires, and making us into true disciples, obedient to Jesus and to the Father who has sent him. Prayer becomes one of the ways by which we follow Jesus in the Christian life.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
July 21 - 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Serving God and Serving Neighbour
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Last Sunday we were shown through the Parable of the Good Samaritan how important it is to serve our neighbour : "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice". And in today's Gospel Jesus completes that by showing how important it is to serve God and give Him our fullest attention by highlighting Mary who was at His feet. Martha stands for the service to the Neighbour while Mary stands for the service to God. Thus we need to be both Martha and Mary.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
July 14 – Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time: What We Must Do
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
In today’s Gospel we are given the summary of Christian belief: Love God & Love Neighbour. This command is nothing remote or mysterious - it’s already written in our hearts, in the book of sacred Scripture: “You have only to carry it out,” Moses says in this week’s First Reading. Jesus tells His interrogator the same thing: “Do this and you will live.” -The scholar, however, wants to know where he can draw the line. That’s the motive behind his question: “Who is my neighbor?”. In his compassion, the Samaritan in Jesus’parable reveals the boundless mercy of God - who came down to us when we were fallen in sin, close to dead, unable to pick ourselves up. Like the Samaritan, He pays the price for us, heals the wounds of sin, pours out on us the oil and wine of the sacraments, entrusts us to the care of His Church, until He comes back for us. Because His love has known no limits, ours cannot either. We are to love as we have been loved, to do for others what He has done for us - joining all things together in His Body, the Church. This is the love that leads to eternal life, the love Jesus commands today of the scholar, and of each of us - “Go and do likewise.”
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
July 7 - Fourteenth Sunday in the Ordinary Time: I have a mission
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Isaiah 66:10-14c
I will spread prosperity over Jerusalem like a river.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 123:1-4
Our eyes are fixed on the Lord.
Second Reading Galatians 6:14-18
May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel Reading
Luke 10:1-12,17-20
St. Luke is unique in recording a mission of the 72 in addition to a mission of the Twelve. God has given us life and brought us to this world for a definite purpose. We are given some definite service and a mission to fulfil. "Somehow I am necessary for His purposes" says John Henry Cardinal Newman. Have you realized the purpose for which God gave you life? Have you identified the mission entrusted to you? Are you doing something to accomplish that mission?
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
June 30 - Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Free to Follow
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading 1 Kings 19:16b,19-21
Elijah anoints Elisha as his successor.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 16:1-2,5,7-11
I set the Lord ever before me.
Second Reading Galatians 5:1,13-18
Christ has set us free.
Gospel Reading
Luke 9:51-62
In todays Readings we are reminded that those who wish to Join Christ must be ready to disengage themselves from any earthly home, ready to disengage from past responsibilities and ready to disengage from past relationships. This simply means singular detachment from earthly matters. Jesus asks his disciples to put Him first even before the most demanding family ties. Can we do that?
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
June 23 - The Feast of Corpus Christi: the Living bread
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
First Reading Genesis 14:18-20
Melchizedek, king of Salem, blessed Abram.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 110:1-4
You are a priest forever, in the line of Melchizedek.
Second Reading 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
Gospel Reading
Luke 9:11b-17
Today we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, or the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Eucharist is true food and drink but at the same time it is very different from every other food and drink. The great difference lies in these words of Christ which St Augustine heard in prayer, “You will not change me into yourself as you would food of your flesh; but you will be changed into me.” We transform ordinary food into our own bodies but the food of the Eucharist transforms us into the body of Christ. Ludwig Feuerbach's statement that we become what we eat is never more true that in the Eucharistic experience.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
June 16 - Holy Trinity Sunday: One God in Three persons
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Holy Trinity Sunday, is celebrated a week after Pentecost Sunday in honour of the most fundamental of Christian beliefs—belief in the Holy Trinity. We can never fully understand the mystery of the Trinity, but we can sum it up in the following formula: God is three Persons in one Nature. The three Persons of God —Father, Son, and Holy Spirit— are all equally God, and They cannot be divided.
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
May 12 - Fourth Sunday of Easter: The Good Shepherd Sunday
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
Saturday Aug 31, 2019
In the gospel reading Jesus identifies himself as the shepherd: “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me”(John 10:27). Remember, each week we take Jesus inside us in the Eucharist and our greatest protection and shepherding comes from within. Take the time to listen to Jesus. Spend some quality time this week with Jesus. Just a few minutes to listen quietly or reflect on his words can change your day. That is how we are nourished. And that is how we can be judged.