For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
16 Oct 2016 – 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
17 Oct 2016 – Monday of Week 29 Year 2
18 Oct 2016 – Saint Luke, Evangelist – Feast
19 Oct 2016 – Wednesday of Week 29 Year 2
20 Oct 2016 – Thursday of Week 29 Year 2
21 Oct 2016 – Friday of Week 29 Year 2
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
9 Oct 2016 – 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
10 Oct 2016 – Monday of Week 28 Year 2
11 Oct 2016 – Tuesday of Week 28 Year 2
12 Oct 2016 – Wednesday of Week 28 Year 2
13 Oct 2016 – Thursday of Week 28 Year 2
14 Oct 2016 – Friday of Week 28 Year 2
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
2 Oct 2016 – 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
3 Oct 2016 – Monday of Week 27 Year 2
4 Oct 2016 – Tuesday of Week 27 Year 2
5 Oct 2016 – Wednesday of Week 27 Year 2
6 Oct 2016 – Thursday of Week 27 Year 2
7 Oct 2016 – Our Lady of the Rosary, Memorial
Every once in a while we come across a person who seems bent in creating problems for us as a church, or such a person is going all out to persecute us, like some sort of villain or antagonist who aims at getting rid of us or get the better of us at all costs. Some of us may try to avoid such a person, or even pray that God would do something to change the person’s ways, so that we would be left in peace. The funny thing is, God does do such things from time to time, and a person who was once so mean and wicked, could change to become a defender of the faith.
In today’s reading, we come across one such person named Paul, who tells us: “You must have heard of my career as a practising Jew, how merciless I was in persecuting the Church of God, how much damage I did to it, how I stood out among other Jews of my generation, and how enthusiastic I was for the traditions of my ancestors. Then God, who had specially chosen me while I was still in my mother’s womb, called me through his grace and chose to reveal his Son in me, so that I might preach the Good News about him to the pagans.” From a persecutor of the faith, Paul became a great defender of the faith, and even eventually died for the faith.
What does this mean to us? It means that we need to be patient and trust that God will take care of things. We need to be courageous and persistent in sharing our faith with others, just as Paul was after his conversion. If God can change a person like Paul, and use him for His glory, just imagine what God could do for us, if we are humble and willing to let God be in control.
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
25 Sept 2016 – 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
26 Sept 2016 – Monday of Week 26 Year 2
27 Sept 2016 – Tuesday of Week 26 Year 2
28 Sept 2016 – Wednesday of Week 26 Year 2
29 Sept 2016 – Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Archangels – Feast
30 Sept 2016 – Friday of Week 26 Year 2
Why do we follow Jesus? Have we decided to follow Jesus, no matter what happens? If disaster strikes, would we still follow Jesus, knowing and trusting that Jesus would be our help and guide? Or would we abandon Jesus and go for some other form of help? Sometimes, we come across people who claim to follow Jesus, only because they think that Jesus could be of use to them. Could some of us have such an attitude, thinking that Jesus is merely a means to satisfy our demands?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us that following Him comes at a cost. We should be ready to give up everything we hold so dear, take up our cross and follow Him. We should also learn to be detached from people and things, so that we could be free to do God’s will. Would we be willing to surrender all to follow Jesus? Or have we become so attached to persons and things around us, and such persons and things have become obstacles preventing us from becoming true disciples of Jesus? May we be true to ourselves and be willing to become true followers of Jesus, letting Him be our constant help and guide, with trust and hope that we would be with Him for all eternity.
I believe most of us would not dare to challenge God or put God to the test. After all, we would want to grow in relationship with God and follow His ways. But there are certain beings which have chosen to go against God. We call such beings the devil or Satan and his fallen angels. We may not see them, but they are there and they are constantly trying to tempt us into following their ways.
In today’s reading, we come across Satan challenging God by saying that Job would curse God if Job lost everything he had, including his family and property. In a way, Satan was insulting God by saying that Job was only God-fearing because of property, wealth and family. But at the end of the reading, we can clearly see that this is not the case, since the reading tells us: “In all this misfortune Job committed no sin nor offered any insult to God.”
If we were in Job’s situation, what would we do? Would we still have trust in God, come what may? Or would we give up on God or curse God for our misfortune? May we be genuine in our trust and hope in God, and continue to follow His ways, no matter what happens.
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
18 Sept 2016 – 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
19 Sept 2016 – Monday of Week 25 Year 2
20 Sept 2016 – Tuesday of Week 25 Year 2
21 Sept 2016 – Saint Matthew, Apostle, Evangelist – Feast
22 Sept 2016 – Thursday of Week 25 Year 2
23 Sept 2016 – Friday of Week 25 Year 2
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
11 Sept 2016 – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
12 Sept 2016 – Monday of Week 24 Year 2
13 Sept 2016 – Tuesday of Week 24 Year 2
14 Sept 2016 – Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
15 Sept 2016 – Our Lady of Sorrows, Memorial
16 Sept 2016 – Friday of Week 24 Year 2
When we are invited to a house for a meal, would we just barge in, go straight to the dining table and begin eating? Of course not! There is a certain decorum and good manners we follow, since the host has taken so much trouble to invite us and prepare us a meal. When the time comes for the meal to be enjoyed, we would also not just simply seat at the dining table, but wait politely for the host to seat us according to his or her preference, and wait till everyone is present and ready, and then wait until we are invited to begin eating. Surely we are not barbarians or so uncivilised as to embarrass the host with disgusting and unbecoming table manners.
In the same way, when we come for Mass to the Table of the Lord, there is a certain decorum, protocol and table manners to follow. In today’s reading, St. Paul reminds us of such decorum, protocol and table manners: “The point is, when you hold these meetings, it is not the Lord’s Supper that you are eating, since when the time comes to eat, everyone is in such a hurry to start his own supper that one person goes hungry while another is getting drunk. Surely you have homes for eating and drinking in? Surely you have enough respect for the community of God not to make poor people embarrassed?… So to sum up, my dear brothers, when you meet for the Meal, wait for one another.”
What St. Paul reminds us in the reading is still applicable even today. When we come for Mass to the Table of the Lord, we are coming for a banquet with the Lord. Unfortunately, we sometimes see some people appearing to be so famished or lack control, that they have to eat something else while Mass is going on; or they even allow their children to eat something during Mass. Surely we can train ourselves and our children to be patient and wait; and then later eat and drink as we like after Mass. Have we forgotten that we are in the presence of God, and that we should learn to wait till the proper time comes for us as a community to partake in the Lord’s meal? Do we not respect and value the Lord’s meal, and wait till the Mass is over?
