18th Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 01.08.2021

 Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15 / Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 / John 6:24-35  

If we were asked whether we know what international event is happening in Japan, presumably the answer would be the Olympic Games. 

But that would not necessarily be the obvious and foregone answer, because with so many other things happening locally and internationally, the publicity about the Olympic games has also been affected. 

Initially, there was even the question of whether the Games would continue as planned, but eventually it went ahead but with much restrictions. 

So, we may know that the Olympic Games is happening in Japan now. The next question is, do we know what is the Olympic motto? 

The Olympic motto is just three Latin words: Citius-Altius-Fortius. These three words mean “Faster-Higher-Stronger”. 

And it was a priest, Fr. Henri Didon OP, who expressed these words in the opening ceremony of a school sports event in 1881, and it was later adopted as the Olympic motto. 

That motto expresses the aspirations of the Olympic movement, not only in its athletic and technical sense, but also from a moral and educational perspective. 

So, when it comes down to competition and sportsmanship, then it will be “sometimes we win, sometimes we learn”. 

Even when it comes to losing or failure, then the lesson that can be learned is that failure is the mother of success. 

So, it is a good thing that the Olympic Games went on. After all, the Olympic Games originated from a break from the fighting by the warring Greek states. 

But going back much earlier than the Greek era, a gold medal could have been given to Moses for leading the Israelites in the desert for 40 years. 

Moses had to endure the unfaithfulness, the stubbornness and the complaints from the Israelites for 40 long years. 

In the 1st reading, we heard of the complaint about the lack of food, and the people even said that they would rather die as slaves in Egypt then to die in the desert. 

But from that, the lesson that Moses and the people learnt was that God will provide them food to eat to their hearts content, even in the desert. 

In the gospel, the people were looking for Jesus, but when we found Him, He had this to say to them: You are not looking for me because you have seen the signs, but because you had all the bread you wanted to eat. 

Jesus went on to tell them not to work for food that could not last, but to work for food that endured to eternal life. 

This working for food that endures to eternal life is essentially the work of faith and to believe that Jesus is the bread of God that has come down from heaven for the life of the world. 

And the people tell Jesus to give them that bread always. For the people, the idea of bread in abundance was stuck in their minds, and they were not seeing the signs and learning from it. 

Well, the signs may change, but it is faith that enables us to see Jesus giving us the spiritual food for life. 

In a way, we don't like the signs to change. So, we would like to come for Mass weekly, receive Holy Communion and to have these spiritual things always, as it was before. 

But the signs are changing, and that doesn't mean we will lose faith. In fact, it calls for a new learning and a new growth in faith. 

One of the amazing stories of the Christians in Japan is about how the faith of the Japanese Christians endured 400 years of persecution. 

Christianity arrived in Japan in 1543, but by 1620, Christianity was banned. Missionaries were expelled and the local Christians were persecuted and they went into hiding. 

So, there was no Mass, no Holy Communion, no Sacraments, no priests, and it was amazing how the Japanese Christians held on to the faith. 

Finally, when missionaries were allowed into Japan, they found these Japanese Christians holding on to their faith with religious items like crucifixes and rosaries that were handed down from generation to generation, and it was for 400 years. They should get gold medals for that. 

So, in these times when we may not be able to come for Mass weekly and our spiritual routines are not always there for us, we have much to learn. 

It is about we, the Church, going out there in the modern world and understanding the signs that God is showing us. 

Like the persecuted Japanese Christians, we find consolation in our religious objects as we use them to stay connected to our faith and to Jesus. 

Yes, let us learn faster, so that we will reach higher and grow stronger in the faith. 

We may not win silver or gold, but we will always have Jesus and we will not thirst and hunger for anything else.

17th Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 25.07.2021

 2 Kings 4:42-44 / Ephesians 4:1-6 / John6:1-15

Whenever the phrase “size does matter” is used, one thought that would come to mind would be “the bigger the better”. 

Certainly, the bigger would be better, in terms of status and prestige and of course pride. 

So, for a car, the bigger the better; for a house, the bigger the better; for a spending budget, the bigger the better. 

By worldly standards, size does matter, and the bigger the better. Big things get the attention and the spotlight. They are impressive, and they may even look sophisticated and expensive. 

And when the big things get all the attention, then the small and little things are often overlooked and neglected. 

But if great oak trees grow from little acorns, and forest fires start with a small spark, then those small and little things are not unimportant. 

In fact, big things are held together by little things, just like how shoes are held on to the feet by shoelaces. 

The gospel account is about the famous story of the miraculous multiplication of loaves and the feeding of the multitude. 

It is an important story as it appears in all the four Gospels. The main point of the story is that God will always provide for the hungry and the needy. 

The story has a few salient points for reflection, like Jesus testing Philip, the small boy with the five barley loaves and two fish and the twelve baskets of leftovers.

But there is one line that may seem rather unimportant and maybe even unnecessary, and the line is this: It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover. 

So why is that line there in the gospel story? Of what significance or importance is that line? 

The Jewish feast of the Passover is an important feast. It recalls the freedom from slavery in Egypt and how they became the people of God. 

It also recalled how the people were tested in the desert and that God provided them food for the journey. 

So, that simple line does not just tell us at what time the story happened. In fact, it prepared for the unfolding of the story of the multiplication of loaves and the feeding of the multitude. 

So that simple line is an important line in the midst of the other more dramatic and salient points of the story. 

It also points to the fact that God uses the lowly and humble things to work His power and miracles. 

And so the lowly five barley loaves and two fish were used to feed the five thousand men, with twelve baskets of leftovers. 

So as much as size does matter, and the bigger the better, yet God is always on the side of the lowly and humble.

There is this story of a big company that has soap packaging production lines, but the production lines had a flaw.

Some boxes were not loaded with the soap and were delivered to the stores and hence there were complaints.

Engineers were called in to look into the problem. A sophisticated system of mechanical, microelectronics, automation and X-ray detection technology were used to successfully solve the problem, but that incurred a high cost.

At another smaller factory, the same production line was used to pack the soap and had the same problems.

The supervisor thought about it, and he came up with a simple idea of getting a powerful industrial fan to blow away the empty boxes, and the problem was solved, at a relatively low cost.

So, the moral of the story is to always look for simple solutions to big problems, and the solutions are usually in the simple and humble things.

Well, size may matter, and the bigger may be better, but God always works through the lowly and humble, just as He worked through that small boy with the five barley loaves and two fish to solve that big problem of the five thousand hungry men.

16th Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 18.07.2021

 Jeremiah 23:1-6 / Ephesians 2:13-18 / Mark 6:30-34

All of us work for a living. Whether we work in a company or work at home (or work from home) or run a business of our own, we all work for a living. 

The Book of Genesis (3:19) states this: By the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread. 

So, the truth is that whatever work we are doing, whatever job we are holding, whatever profession we are in, we are going to sweat at it, it is not going to be easy. That is the truth. 

Some professions may seem glamorous and even earn big money, and there might be times we fantasize about it. 

But as in everything else, there are always two sides of the coin, and so some may get ahead, but there are also a number at the tail end.

And when we feel the job that we are in is like stuck in the rut, with no prospects, with no security and no meaning, then we will surely be looking for greener pastures. 

Undoubtedly, what we desire in life is also what we desire in our job and in our work. 

We desire that it will be easy, that it will be comfortable, that we will be happy, that there will be no sweat. 

But the challenge in any job or in any work, is not how hard or how difficult it is or what the pay is like. 

The challenge is in the people that we work with. Whether we work at home, or work in the sun, we interact with the people around us, and they can be our elders, our superiors and our colleagues. 

Our relationship with them will also shape our attitudes, our sense of duty and responsibility, and also the meaning of what we are doing. 

In the gospel, when the disciples came back from their mission, Jesus wanted to bring them to a lonely place and rest for a while. 

Because there were so many people coming and going that the disciples had no time even to eat. They were certainly tired and hungry. 

They may not be angry or resentful about that, but Jesus also knew they cannot continue like that or else they will end up burnt out. 

But even as they tried to go to a lonely place to rest, the crowds guessed where they were going and followed them there. 

And here, Jesus showed by example what service is all about. When He saw the large crowd, He took pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and He set Himself to teach them at some length. 

Jesus showed that He came to serve, and service means to cater to the needs of others, and even to their demands. 

So whatever job, or work, or profession or even ministry that we are in, Jesus is teaching us that it is not so much what we do but how we are serving the people around us. 

Whether they are our elders, our superiors, our colleagues or our subordinates, we serve by treating them with respect and justice, with integrity and love. 

When we treat them well, then all will be well. That is what Jesus is teaching us about service. 

There is an article on social media about a man who received an “adorable” letter inside his delivery parcel by someone called “Ah Sing”.

That man had ordered some items online and when his goods arrived, he received a pleasant surprise. 

Inside his parcel was a “Thank you” note from the merchant, along with a personal handwritten letter by that “Ah Sing”.

Addressed to the customer, Ah Sing urged the customer to direct any feedback or complaints to his boss via a messaging app.

He assured the customer that his boss "will reply you very fast one. Unless he is driving or in a meeting."

Ah Sing also guaranteed this: "If you message him after 9pm, he will reply you next day 5am!".

Additionally, if customers are satisfied with the parcel and packaging, they can let the boss know "is Ah Sing pack one!"

Ah Sing's letter also wished the customer all the best, as well as other things besides.

Well, that “Ah Sing” surely is happy with his job, with what he is doing and his service brought a delightful smile to others. 

So, in whatever we do, no matter what our job or our work is, let us do it for the glory of God and for the good of others. 

May we serve as Jesus did, and may our service bring a smile to others.

14th Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 04.07.2021

 Ezekiel 2:2-5 / 2 Cor 12:7-10 / Mark 6:1-6

To say that something is tried-and-tested, it means to say that it is proven to be effective and reliable. It means that it works. 

But to say that something is tried and tested, it does not necessarily mean that it succeeded at the first time and at the first test. 

It would have gone through a series of trials and numerous tests before it can earn the title “tried-and-tested”. 

So, there are products that claim to be tried and tested like beauty and skincare creams to prevent aging, hair rejuvenating lotions that will make hair grow, and other health products that claim to do wonders. 

And there are also methods and techniques to make money, that claimed to be tried and tested, and claimed to be successful, or at least a high percentage of success. 

When these products and methods claim to be what they are, it is up to us to try it and test it and then give our verdict on it. 

To earn the title “tried-and-tested” is certainly not an easy process, and setbacks and criticisms are to be expected. 

We don't usually say that a person is “tried-and-tested”, but we would say that the person is trustworthy, reliable, honest, sincere and faithful. 

To have all these qualities is as good as saying that the person has been tried and tested, and it is a person that people will look up to. 

When Jesus came to His hometown, His reputation had preceded him. He had been “tried-and-tested” and He had been successful so far in His ministry. 

And when He began teaching in the synagogue, the people were astonished when they heard Him. 

They had heard about His wisdom and the miracles He worked. They have known Him before He left, and He was different now, and they wondered where He got all those gifts of wisdom and miracles. 

And then they dug up His background and labelled Him as a carpenter, and they would not accept him. In other words, they so-called closed the case on Jesus. 

So even before Jesus could be tried and tested in His own hometown, He was rejected. 

In the minds of the people of His hometown, carpenters cannot be preachers or prophets. That left Jesus amazed. 

Certainly, He was disappointed, and He could work no miracle there, though He cured a few sick people. 

It was a setback for Him to be rejected by the people of His hometown, but He had to move on to proclaim the Good News elsewhere. 

The gospel account reminds us that new beginnings can be difficult to accept, especially when we are so used and familiar with the old ways. 

But it is in these new beginnings that we have to try and test out the new directions that God is showing us. 

In this particular time, there are new initiatives and people have come forward to keep the faith going. 

There are people manning the safety procedures for Masses to ensure a safe environment for worship in Church. 

There are people who have organized online prayers and spiritual activities to keep the faith burning and growing. 

There are other initiatives that are being tried and tested to see how people can be connected with God and with each other. 

Through these ways and means, the Good News is being proclaimed, not just in Church, but also at homes and even in never-thought-of places. 

These are the prophetic beginnings of the future. 

Let us be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, let us try and test out the new ways and directions. 

Let us accept what God is showing us, and the Good News of God’s love will still be proclaimed even in these times.