Faithfulness and Love

Monthly Archives: April 2015

Friday of Week 24 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in 24th, Friday, Ordinary Time, Weekday, Year 1 Leave a comment

What is our purpose as Christians? Are we Christians because we want to serve God and serve others? Or have some of us become more and more interested only in serving ourselves? When we look at the church we are attending, is the church only interested in making money and the spiritual growth of the faithful is merely for show, limited or non-existent? Sometimes we could be guilty of putting a price on everything in the name of religion. For example, we have seen how some people have been duped into paying large sums of money to attend a healing rally organised by a so-called famous pastor who claims to be able to heal anyone, when Jesus did not enforce any charges for healing others. People gave out of the generosity of their hearts and not because they were being forced or cajoled to. Does the church we go to have this kind of attitude, where it is only all about money? Are we ourselves having such an attitude also? It is interesting to note that some people seem to think that they can pay their way to heaven, sort of like “cheap grace” where the more they contribute, the better the chances for them to reach heaven. Has our church and even some of us begun to have such thoughts?

In today’s reading, St. Paul reminds us sternly: “This is what you are to teach the brothers to believe and persuade them to do. Anyone who teaches anything different, and does not keep to the sound teaching which is that of our Lord Jesus Christ, the doctrine which is in accordance with true religion, is simply ignorant and must be full of self-conceit – with a craze for questioning everything and arguing about words. All that can come of this is jealousy, contention, abuse and wicked mistrust of one another; and unending disputes by people who are neither rational nor informed and imagine that religion is a way of making a profit. Religion, of course, does bring large profits, but only to those who are content with what they have. We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it; but as long as we have food and clothing, let us be content with that.”

This is where we have to honestly ask ourselves: are we a church only for the money? Sometimes we may discover that the church we go to could be only for the money, if the rich, influential and wealthy are well treated, but the poor, the marginalised, those who are not so well-off or even those who are struggling to make ends meet are given little or minimal attention. If the church we go to is treating people differently according to dollars and cents, then perhaps we should seriously consider whether that church is really a church of Jesus Christ at all.

Housekeeping – Week 24 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in Housekeeping, Ordinary Time, Sunday, Weekday Leave a comment

For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

13 Sept 2015 – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B
14 Sept 2015 – Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
15 Sept 2015 – Our Lady of Sorrows, Memorial
16 Sept 2015 – Wednesday of Week 24 Year 1
17 Sept 2015 – Thursday of Week 24 Year 1
18 Sept 2015 – Friday of Week 24 Year 1

Thursday of Week 24 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in 24th, Ordinary Time, Thursday, Weekday, Year 1 Leave a comment

As clergy, religious and lay persons who hold teaching positions in church, we hold a great responsibility. When we teach, we are teaching what the church teaches, not what we think and not our opinion. Sometimes we come across people who begin to divert from what the church teaches because they value what they think more than what is taught by the church for centuries. When we have this kind of attitude, we could be responsible for causing schism, where people begin to break away from the church to form their own, because they think their opinion is the correct one and all others are wrong.

That is why, St. Paul in today’s reading cautions us: “Take great care about what you do and what you teach; always do this, and in this way you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.” Having an opinion about something is fine, it is not wrong. But it becomes a problem when that opinion you have begins to cloud your mind and causes you to become convinced that the opinion is truth, even though it is merely your opinion and has not been verified and accepted by the church. Thus, let us be responsible in what we teach, and teach the truth, for no servant can be greater than the Master. If we teach our own stuff, are we trying to usurp our role and become the master instead?

Wednesday of Week 24 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in 24th, Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Weekday, Year 1 Leave a comment

Every now and then, we come across people who are habitual liars. Such people cannot seem to speak the truth or say it as it is, due to some reason or another. People lie for many different reasons, among them include: to protect one’s skin, to safe face, to avoid work or certain tasks assigned to them, to gain some advantage in life, the list can go on. But no matter how hard we try to avoid the truth, the truth will one day surface. There is saying: “tell the truth and shame the devil,” and that saying should be taken to heart, since it is better to stay truthful than to live with lies and be constantly fearful, nervous and insecure.

In today’s reading, St. Paul reminds us: “I wanted you to know how people ought to behave in God’s family – that is, in the Church of the living God, which upholds the truth and keeps it safe.” When we live on the side of truth, we have no reason to fear or be high strung, since there is nothing for others to use as ammunition to blame us. The truth may hurt, but isn’t better for the hurt to be felt upfront, instead of the possibility of the hurt being felt for all eternity?

Our Lady of Sorrows, Memorial

Posted on by Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary, Memorial, Sorrows Leave a comment

It is not easy for a mother to care for her sick child. The mother would spend sleepless nights caring for her child and ensuring that her child takes medicine regularly, while praying that her child would recover quickly. It is even more not easy if the child is dying. The mother would be quite distraught, and she would turn to God in prayer, begging Him to heal her child and spare her child from death. Whatever the circumstances may be, a mother would generally make much sacrifices for the health and wellbeing of her child.

Mother Mary in today’s Gospel also made much sacrifices for Jesus. In fact, she made the ultimate sacrifice. She saw her son Jesus dying on the cross. Most other mothers would have avoided being at the crucifixion site, for personal safety and also it would have been too much to bear. But Mother Mary still stayed on, keeping vigil with her son, Jesus, and watched with agony as her son’s life slowly ebbed away. The Gospel tells us that Jesus gave Mother Mary to His beloved disciple as his mother, so that Mother Mary would have a place of refuge. In a way, Jesus is giving Mother Mary to each and every one of us, as we are like that beloved disciple.

In the end, Jesus died on that cross. But is this the end? No. We know that Jesus rose again after 3 days. Jesus’ death was for the forgiveness of our sins. What was initially a sorrowful scene has turned to great joy as Jesus appeared once again to His disciples. Even then, we could imagine the strength and patience of a mother, our Mother Mary, who despite going through hell and back, still had the fortitude to “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” May we too have the fortitude to face up to the many dangers, troubles and persecutions which may come our way, taking Mother Mary as our shining example, and always depending on our Lord’s help and providence.

Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Posted on by Posted in Exaltation, Feast, Holy Cross Leave a comment

Why do we give so much honour to the Holy Cross? Besides being the symbol of Christianity, the Holy Cross brings to light many fundamental truths taught by the Catholic Church. It is the symbol of Divine Love: for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son. It is the symbol of salvation: through Jesus Christ and the Sacrament of Baptism, those who believe in Him and obey His teachings, will enjoy eternal life in the Kingdom of God. It is also the symbol of Divine compassion: God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it, but in order that the world may be saved through Jesus.

Everywhere we look, the symbol of the Holy Cross is present to remind us of the infinite sacrifice Jesus did for our redemption. The sign of the Cross is found in the Sacred Liturgy. The Cross is in all Christian festivals. It is in the Rite of Adoration and is the symbol of blessing. It is found in the dedication of Churches, in certain Christian schools, homes, in certain Christian hospitals, seminaries, convents, Religious Orders, and even in cemeteries. In many places, we would come across the Holy Cross in its various designs and forms.

Today, let us look up to the Holy Cross as our symbol of faith and salvation. Let us always honour the work of Christ that was manifested through the Holy Cross, the true symbol of love, compassion and forgiveness. Let us too learn to take up our cross and follow Jesus, learning from Him and spreading His Good News to all the ends of the earth.

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

Posted on by Posted in 24th, Ordinary Time, Sunday, Year B Leave a comment

As children, many of us may have attended Religious Education each Sunday. For some of us, such classes are called Catechism classes or Sunday school. During such classes, we would have learnt so many things about God, about Jesus, about the ten commandments, the list goes on. But the problem is: is this what faith is all about? Is our faith confined only to memorising our catechism? Some of us may have gone through rote learning in school, where we had to memorise things and regurgitate such facts in order to pass exams. But what benefit did we eventually gain from such methods of learning? Do we understand what we have learnt and are we able to apply such facts in daily life? In the same way, do we understand what we have learnt at Catechism classes, and are we able to apply what we have learnt in daily life?

The fact is: faith is more than just memorising facts, as the readings today tell us. Faith is more than merely reciting the creed; more than learning our catechism; more than just knowing about God and Jesus. It is pointless for us to just have the kind of faith where we have head-level knowledge about something or someone, where we merely have facts and information about that thing or person. Instead, our faith should be about knowing someone, whereby we have a special and intimate relationship with that person.

In today’s gospel, Peter recognises Jesus as the Christ, the Anointed One of God. However, this recognition is only head knowledge. Peter knew about Jesus but didn’t know him as a person. Jesus, therefore, explains who he really is and what his mission entails. Jesus tells Peter that He must suffer grievously, be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, put to death, and after three days He will rise again. But this is the part which Peter could not understand. Peter knew that Jesus was the Christ but could not accept the fact this Christ must suffer and die. To help Peter, Jesus further explains that for one to become His disciple, that person must be prepared to renounce himself, take up his cross and follow the same fate of Jesus. This means that the disciple must have an intimate relationship with Jesus and not only be satisfied with knowing about Jesus.

That is why our faith would be meaningless if it stays only within head-knowledge. Our faith calls for conversion, commitment and action. St. James in the second reading challenges us to show our faith through our good deeds. It is not enough to just say that we have faith, but we must prove our faith through the lives we live, by our readiness to accept the cross of Jesus and follow him. We must be prepared to lose everything, even our lives knowing that “anyone who loses his life for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.”

Let us therefore honestly examine our faith. Is our faith merely head-knowledge? Is our faith only a safe kind of faith that tries to avoid trouble or the cross? If we call ourselves Christians, then we should be doing what Christ did. We should renounce ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus, since He is the way to eternal life and glory.

Housekeeping – Week 23 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in Housekeeping, Ordinary Time, Sunday, Weekday Leave a comment

For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

6 Sept 2015 – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B
7 Sept 2015 – Monday of Week 23 Year 1
8 Sept 2015 – Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Feast
9 Sept 2015 – Wednesday of Week 23 Year 1
10 Sept 2015 – Thursday of Week 23 Year 1
11 Sept 2015 – Friday of Week 23 Year 1

Friday of Week 23 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in 23rd, Friday, Ordinary Time, Weekday, Year 1 Leave a comment

It is easy for some of us to find fault with other people. Some of us begin to see only the imperfect or less desirable things about others, instead of acknowledging their strengths and capabilities. One reason why people look down upon others or only know how to find fault with others is because the person himself or herself is insecure and unwilling to come to terms with one’s own faults. So to try and cover up their own faults, the person would project such faults on others. But sometimes, the person’s own faults would be exposed, and when confronted, they may become even more insecure and agitated. Quite often, this stems from the fact that the person is too proud or egoistic or even having some sort of inferiority complex, making it difficult for the person to be humble enough to admit one’s faults and change for the better.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus admonishes us when He says: “Why do you observe the splinter in your brother’s eye and never notice the plank in your own? How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me take out the splinter that is in your eye,” when you cannot see the plank in your own? Hypocrite! Take the plank out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly enough to take out the splinter that is in your brother’s eye.” Perhaps we should learn to be less proud and egoistic and learn to be more humble, so that we could learn to grow into better persons as we grow closer in relationship with God. Nobody is perfect and if we think we are perfect, then we may be like gods and we may think that we do not need God. Our pride and ego will not help us in the long run, so instead of trying so hard and remaining so stubborn in our present circumstances, let us be willing to let go and let God be our guide and help. After all, what good is all the pride and ego in the world to us, if it would only lead us to eternal ruin in the end?

Thursday of Week 23 Year 1

Posted on by Posted in 23rd, Ordinary Time, Thursday, Weekday, Year 1 Leave a comment

Each and every one of us may have experienced conflict at some point of our lives. Sometimes the conflict could be a really small matter, nothing serious, and should be amicably resolved in short time. Sometimes the conflict could be of a more serious issue, and we may need more time to resolve it, but ultimately, we need to employ Christian charity and forgiveness, and not let such an issue blow out of proportion. As some of us may have heard, “let us not make a mountain out of a mole hill.” In other words, we should be courageous, kind, firm and forgiving in getting the conflict settled, instead of adding more fuel to the fire and making things worse.

In today’s reading, St. Paul reminds us: “You are God’s chosen race, his saints; he loves you, and you should be clothed in sincere compassion, in kindness and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord has forgiven you; now you must do the same. Over all these clothes, to keep them together and complete them, put on love. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, because it is for this that you were called together as parts of one body. Always be thankful.”

We should remember that when we pray the Our Father or the Lord’s Prayer, we are also asking God to be our guide, our providence and also to forgive the many trespasses we may have committed. But at the same time, we too should do the same towards others, as St. Paul reminds us. Are we compassionate, kind, humble, gentle and loving enough to forgive and love others, just as God has forgiven us and loves us immensely?