Pentecost Sunday, Year A, 28.05.2023

  Acts 2:1-11 / 1 Cor 12:3-7 / John 20:19-23

In the whole spectrum of creation, human beings stand out as the most unique. 

Human beings have intellect and will. Their intelligence strives for development and new inventions. 

They know generally what is right and wrong. They exercise their freedom of choice to do what they wish. 

So, human beings can decide to do what is right or wrong. They can choose to be kind and gentle, or to be cruel and hostile. 

They can choose to be generous or selfish. They can choose to be truthful or deceitful. 

In other words, a person can choose to be whatever kind of human being he or she wishes to be. 

So more than just acting on instinct, to be a human being is to make decisions, and to decide on choices. 

That is what makes human beings so different from animals and other creatures. 

But what makes human beings so unique is what is revealed by God in the Bible. 

The Book of Genesis tells us that God made man in His image, and it was the best of all His creation. 

So, humanity stands right at the top, over and above all other creatures and creation. 

In other words, humanity is the glory of God. 

But here comes the difficult part. If humanity is the glory of God, if humanity is made in the image of God, then why is there so much sin and evil in the world? 

Humanity seems to be on the road of self-destruction, as well as the destruction of creation. 

There are violence and hostility, bloodshed and genocide, pollution and the destruction of nature. 

And on the personal level, there is greed and selfishness, exploitation and disregard of the human dignity. 

And at times, human beings seem to be like worse than animals. That can be quite shocking and disgusting. 

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost. At the first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples to empower them to proclaim that Jesus is Lord, and the Good News of salvation. 

As we celebrate this feast, the Holy Spirit comes into our hearts to empower us as He did at the first Pentecost. 

And Holy Spirit descends on the Church and on the world to reclaim and renew the image of humanity that God has created in His likeness. 

The Holy Spirit wants to empower us to be living images of God's love so that we can be signs of God's presence in the world. 

And the Holy Spirit wants to do so much in us and for us. 

The Holy Spirit wants to help us to pray, so that we can discover the power of prayer that will help us see God's will and be able to do it. 

The Holy Spirit wants to bless us, so that we are able to turn adversity into opportunity. 

The Holy Spirit wants to show us signs and wonders, so that there will be conversion and repentance, and sinfulness will give way to holiness. 

May the Holy Spirit reclaim and renew our hearts and make us living images of God's glory. 

Then we will discover the particular way in which the Holy Spirit is given to each of us. 

And may we let the Holy Spirit lead us to proclaim the marvels of God in our lives, so that we will see the signs and wonders of God in the Church and in the world.

7th Sunday of Easter, Year A, 2023.05.21

Acts 1:12-14 / 1 Peter 4:13-16 / John 17:1-11

If we were asked, what the Church is about, what would be our reply? 

Of course, that is a rather broad question, and we can try to respond from the Catholic perspective. 

For a start, we can say that the Church is a building, yet it is not just an ordinary building. 

The Church is the House of God, and we come to Church to offer worship and prayer. 

So, the Church, as a building, is a holy place, where those who are tired and troubled go to for refuge and solace. 

We can also say that the Church is an organization with a hierarchy. 

But, it is not just an organization with a human hierarchy of ranks and titles. 

The Church is the Body of Christ, with Jesus as the Head, and we are the members of His Body. 

And as members of the Body of Christ, we form a community. 

But the Christian community is not just governed by precepts and statutes. 

More than just precepts and statutes, the Church is guided and directed by the Holy Spirit. 

So, the Church is the sign of God's presence in the world. 

And the Church is also the sign of God's salvation for the world. 

When we look at today's readings, we will see the essence and the foundation of the Church. 

In the 1st reading, the Church is portrayed as a community of disciples united in prayer. 

Praying together with them was Mary, the mother of Jesus, and other disciples. 

As it was then for the early Church, so must it be for the Church in today's world. 

Because, being united in prayer is a powerful sign that God is present in the Church. 

Whether it is individual prayer or community prayer, when the Church prays, God grants His abundant blessings. 

And Jesus assures us of God's blessings, because in the gospel, He says that He prays for us, His Church. 

We are His body, He loves us, He cares for us, He saves us.

And He sends us into the world to be witnesses of His saving love for others. 

As the 2nd reading tells us, in this world we have to be prepared to face sufferings. 

It is only with prayer that we can give a Christian response to suffering. 

The 2nd reading says that if we can have some share in the sufferings of Christ, we ought to be glad, because we will enjoy a much greater gladness when His glory is revealed. 

In other words, when we accept sufferings, we will receive blessings. 

But like Jesus who raised His eyes to heaven and prayed, may we also raise our eyes and hearts to heaven in prayer. 

Let the voices of prayer be heard in the Christian homes, as we pray for God's blessings on husband and wife relationships, and parent and children relationships. 

Let the voices of prayer be in the workplace, although it may be silent prayers, so that all will work for the glory of God. 

And may the voices of prayer be always heard in the Church, as we pray, that filled with the power of the Holy spirit, we will go into the world to proclaim and witness to God's saving love for the world. 

The world is in need of prayers, in need of salvation, in need of God's love. 

Let us bring God's love and salvation into the world with our faithful and fervent prayers.

6th Sunday of Easter, Year A, 14.05.2023

 Acts 8:5-8, 14-17 / 1 Peter 3:15-18 / John 14:15-21

We know that it is an obligation to come for Mass on Sundays. 

Some of us would even come for Mass on weekdays, although it is not an obligation to do so. 

An obligation means that it is a requirement, a duty or a commitment. So, an obligation is not an option.

But, why is it that we must come every Sunday for Mass? Why can't it be fortnightly, or monthly, or quarterly, or whatever? 

The main reason can be found in the Bible, that God, after His work of creation, rested on the 7th day. 

Sunday is also the Day of the Lord, in which we celebrate the Day of Resurrection. 

So, Sunday is a day of rest, where God calls us to come to Him and to celebrate. 

We come for the Sunday Mass to offer worship and to give thanks for God's blessings of life and love. 

We come for the Sunday mass to celebrate relationships - our relationship with God, and our relationship with one another. 

And we come for the Sunday Mass to offer prayers of intercession as we pray for ourselves, for the Church and for the world. 

So, the Sunday Mass obligation has the tone of a divine commandment. 

But as with all Divine laws and commandments, we know that it is for our good, it is for our benefit. 

In the gospel, Jesus says this to us: If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

We know what the Commandment of Jesus is based on - it is based on love. It is a commandment of love. 

Jesus loves us and He calls us to love Him and to love others. 

So, love is a commandment, love is a commitment and love is also a revelation. 

When we obey the Commandment of love, Jesus promises us a gift of divine love. 

Jesus promised to give us the Holy Spirit to be with us forever. The Holy Spirit, who is the spirit of Truth, will come upon those who live by the Commandment of love. 

The Holy Spirit will reveal to us the reality of the truth of love in our lives. 

When we choose the way of love, the truth is that we choose the way of God. 

And the ways of God is beyond the ways of man, and beyond the thinking of man. 

In choosing the way of love, we choose to be life-giving. So, we will choose to love, to forgive, to be compassionate, to be kind, to be gentle, and to be humble. 

We will put God first in our lives, and that means we will pray and we will entrust to God our plans and our choices, and to let God direct our lives. 

And when we face difficulties, despair and distress, we know that the Holy Spirit, our Advocate, will help us and protect us from danger and from losing faith. 

All that is the truth of life, and that truth is revealed to those who follow God's commandment of love. 

So, coming for Sunday mass is not just an obligation. 

It is a celebration of love, it is a revelation of truth. 

With the gift of the Holy Spirit, we will know the truth of love, we will know how to live our lives.

And we will also help others to live their lives in truth and with love.

5th Sunday of Easter, Year A, 07.05.2023

 Acts 6:1-7 / 1 Peter 2:4-9 / John 14:1-12

The amazing thing about life is that what does not stop us will make us stronger. 

The human ability to move on despite tragedies and disasters is actually quite astonishing. 

Just going back to recent history, humanity has survived two major wars on a worldwide scale. 

And the recent worldwide pandemic has finally been accepted as an endemic. 

Although what does not stop us will make us stronger, we also know that gain comes with pain.

The mega troubles of a worldwide scale have caused despair and distress. 

Similarly the personal troubles on a personal level will also cause despair and distress. 

But we want to move on and we know that we have to move on. 

But what are we moving on to? Are we moving on towards more troubles and more despair and distress? 

If what does not stop us will make us stronger, then we also must stop and ponder. 

We ponder about what has happened, and we wonder about what will happen. 

In pondering and wondering, we may come to see that if we can't handle the small troubles in life, then we will really be in despair over the bigger troubles. 

In the 1st reading, we hear of the early Church facing a rather small problem, and that is about the distribution of food to the poor in which some widows were neglected. 

It may seem to be a small problem compared to persecutions, but the apostles had to look into it. 

It was not just an administrative matter, because it also has spiritual implications. 

The apostles realized what their priority was, and after prayer, they appointed seven men to do that admin work. 

It may seem to be a small administrative matter, but if the apostles do not prioritize their spiritual duty, then there will be big troubles. 

In the gospel, Jesus tells us not to let our hearts be troubled. 

He tells us to trust in God, and to trust in Him. 

He tells us that He has prepared a place for us and that He will bring us there. 

When we think about what is troubling us, it comes down to our security. 

We are anxious and we worry about our basic necessities of life, like food, clothing and shelter. 

We are anxious and worry about our financial security, our job security, our relationships and family, our health, etc. 

So far, we have survived and moved on. 

Although the troubles of life have not stopped us, yet we must ponder. 

In spite of the troubles of life, what is it that we hope for? 

Yes, we hope for a better life. But more than that, we hope for an eternal life. 

It is an eternal life with Jesus, where He will wipe away the tears from our eyes, and troubles of our hearts. 

So, we journey on towards the future, with our hopes on the eternal future. 

We journey on with Jesus, who is our Way, our Truth and our Life.

We journey on towards that eternal dwelling that Jesus has promised us.

4th Sunday of Easter, Year A, 30.04.2023

 Acts 2:14, 36-41 / 1 Peter 2:20-25 / John 10:1-10

The general understanding of a religion is that there is a God and the followers of that religion worship that God. 

Then comes along the precepts of the religion, like Commandments and regulations. 

The reason that people follow a particular religion is because of family traditions, or that they have experienced some goodness of that religion. 

As for the Christian faith, it has all the above aspects and maybe even more. 

But, as we reflect either on our Christian faith, we will come to see one fundamental and essential aspect. 

And that aspect is relationship. 

It is the relationship between God and us, and our relationship with one another. 

That relationship is profoundly expressed in the Commandment to love God and to love one another. 

And as much as God calls us His people, there is also another image that is used to express the relationship between God and us. 

And that image is the shepherd and his sheep. That image runs throughout the Bible, in the writings of the prophets, in the Psalms and in the gospels, like in today's Gospel. 

And this Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, is also called Good Shepherd Sunday, with an emphasis on vocations to the priesthood and religious life. 

So, there is a religious basis to call Jesus our Good Shepherd, and we willingly call ourselves His sheep. 

And when we understand the relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, then we will know why that imagery is used. 

Out there in the fields and in the pastures, the shepherd is often alone with his sheep. 

He knows every one of his sheep, and the unique characteristic of the sheep is that they listen to the shepherd's voice, and only to his voice. 

At the end of the day, the shepherd will gather his sheep into a cove-like area, and he will rest at the entrance. 

It is an image of an intimate relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, almost like that of a father and his children. 

So, we may wonder, how can a sheep go missing and be lost. The reason is that when a sheep is sick, it will not be able to listen clearly, and it will not see clearly as well, so it will not hear the shepherd's voice and lose sight of the flock.

Hence, the urgency of the shepherd to look for that lost sheep before anything tragic happens to it. 

As we think about all these on Good Shepherd Sunday, we may come to see that to be a shepherd is a challenging and demanding vocation. 

Yes, we pray for those who are preparing for the priesthood to offer themselves in service to God and to His people. 

We also pray for those who have answered the call to serve, meaning the priests who are the shepherds of the Church, that they will be faithful and committed to their sacred vocation. 

We pray also for ourselves who are God's sheep, that we will listen to the voice of truth and love, and follow the Good Shepherd in the path of salvation. 

And we pray that we will also look out for the lost sheep. 

For whatever reason that they have left the Church, their deep desire is to come back to God and to the Church. 

And may we, the shepherds and the sheep, the priests and the People of God, be the voice, the hands and the feet of the Good Shepherd who will look for those lost sheep. 

The world has many other distracting voices, and there are those who want to steal, to kill and to destroy. 

We pray that Jesus, our Good Shepherd, will protect the shepherds and the sheep of His Church, and lead us to the pastures of blessings, and to the eternal pastures of the Kingdom of Heaven.

3rd Sunday of Easter Year A, 23.04.2023

 Acts 2:42-47 / 1 Peter 1:3-9 / John 20:19-31

In the journey of life, we don't walk alone. 

In the story of creation, God saw that man, and the rest of creation was good. 

But there was one thing that God saw that was not good, and that was, man was alone. 

And hence, God created woman, and together with the man, they were to go forth and multiply and fill the Earth with love. 

But there were times when man chose to go alone, maybe because to go fast, one goes alone. 

But going alone, or wanting to go fast, will certainly have problems. 

Peter was alone when he denied Jesus, not once, but three times. 

Judas had his own ideology, and he ended up as a tragedy. 

Thomas chose to be in isolation, and he missed the first appearance of the Risen lord. 

As we have heard, to go fast, one goes alone. But to go far, we go together. 

To be together is to keep each other company, whether we are happy or in misery. 

For the two disciples of Jesus who were on their way to Emmaus, they were downcast and in misery. 

They were walking away from Jerusalem as their hopes were shattered with the death of Jesus. 

Their only consolation was that they had each other's company in their misery. 

But we remembered that Jesus promised where two or three are gathered, He will be there. 

Jesus came along and walked with the two disciples along their journey, and listened to their story. 

He then enlightened them with the Scriptures, and finally revealed Himself to them at the breaking of bread. 

For the two disciples, the journey to Emmaus was heavy with disappointment. 

But the journey back to Jerusalem was burning with excitement. 

Jesus had promised His disciples that He would rise from the dead, and the two disciples experienced the Resurrection. 

But for the two disciples as well as for the rest of the disciples, there was a deeper revelation. 

The Risen Lord Jesus had kept His promise that He will be with them, and will journey with them to the end of time. 

As we journey in our faith, let us remember that Jesus promised to be with us. 

As we journey on, let us also journey together with each other, whether it is in excitement or in disappointment. 

And let us also look out for the lonely and the lost. 

Let us look out for those who are unhappy and in misery. 

They are the ones who walk alone in misery and with no company. 

Let us walk with them, and Jesus will walk with us. 

Together with Jesus, we will go far and will even receive a revelation of Heaven. 

And it will be a journey together with hearts burning with love.

2nd Sunday of Easter, Year A, 16.04.2023

 Acts 2:42-47 / 1 Peter 1:3-9 / John 20:19-31

One of the easiest words to say is a mono syllable word that has just two letters, and that word is “No”. 

It can be said without much effort, and without having to exercise much of the mouth muscles. 

And there are many ways to say it. It can be groaned out; it can be said with teeth clenched; it can be repeated multiple times to emphasize objection or opposition; or it can be said just once, and it's meaning and message is clear enough. 

The word “No” is so much easier to say than the word “Yes”. To say “Yes”, will make us feel vulnerable, and our availability will be taken up by others. 

To say “Yes”, will require our submission as well as our obedience to our superiors or to a higher authority. 

So, the word “Yes” is a word that will have to be used with caution, as there will be implications on our availability, our vulnerability and our security.

So, the easiest word out of any situation that we don't like or that we do not want to be involved in, would be to say “No”. 

That would shut the door to any further discussion or negotiation or agreement. 

So, for Thomas, who was not with the disciples when the Risen Lord appeared to them, his response to what they said about having seen the Risen Lord is a straight and sharp “No”. 

And he showed how adamant he was when he said this: Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands, and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe. 

So, in short, it was: “No” means “No”. 

But, it was understandable why Thomas was so adamant. When he saw Jesus being nailed to the cross and died on it, it was a shocking “No” to him – “No” it can't be. 

Then after that, with no hope left in him, he decided that it was no point being with the disciples anymore, so, maybe, that was why he wasn't with the disciples when the Risen Lord first appeared to them. 

For Thomas, he was like one big tied up knot. His mind, his heart and his life were tied up like a knot, and he had only one word to say to anything and to anyone, and that word was “No”. 

But, it was to such resistance that Jesus appeared again to show compassion and mercy to Thomas. 

With love, mercy and compassion Jesus turned the “No” into a “Yes”. 

And that “Yes” from Thomas became a profound statement of faith - My Lord and my God. 

On this second Sunday of Easter, as we give thanks to God for His love, mercy and compassion, let us surrender our “No” that has tied up the many knots in our lives. 

There are the tight and hardened knots of our minds, our hearts and our lives. 

There are the tight knots of our faith and that have resulted in our disobedience to God. 

There are the tight knots in our relationships that have caused tension and friction. 

We have said “No” too many times that we are like a big “No” to God and to others. 

But Jesus came for Thomas to untie the knots of his life, and to change his “No” to a “Yes”. 

It was a resounding “Yes” from Thomas as he proclaims: My Lord and my God. 

Let us not say “No” to Jesus, but let us say “Yes” to Him in this following prayer.

O God,

Please untie the knots that are in my mind, 

my heart and my life. 

Remove the have nots ,

the can nots and the do nots

that I have in my mind,

Erase all the will nots , 

might nots 

that may find a home in my heart .

Release me from the could nots

would nots

that obstruct my life.

And most of all O God;

I ask that you remove from my mind ,

my heart and my life

all the “am nots” 

that I have allowed to hold me back , 

especially the thought,

that I am not good enough 

Amen.