5th Sunday of Easter, Year C, 18.05.2025

Acts 14:21-27 / Apocalypse 21:1-5 / John 13:31-35

The word “goodbye” is a common word, and it is also a word that is used daily. 

It is usually shortened to “bye”, and we say to our loved ones when we leave the house.

We say it to our colleagues after work, we say it to our friends after a gathering, and we say it because it is customary to do so.

The word “goodbye” or “bye” is so common and used so often that it is said casually. 

It is with an expectation that we will meet again, sooner or later, in the future. 

It is not expected to be a final goodbye, or with the knowledge that the goodbye means that we will not be meeting again. 

But there are occasions when the goodbye is the final goodbye. 

And then there are some people who may not have the opportunity to say the last goodbye to us. 

But whether the goodbye is said or not, their memory lingers on in our minds. 

In the gospel, when Judas left the group, he did not say goodbye to anyone. 

He was so obsessed with betraying Jesus, that his mind was focused on carrying out that plan of betrayal. 

When Judas had left, Jesus talked about Himself being glorified and God being glorified. 

For Jesus, He knew that His hour had come, and that by His suffering and death, it would be His hour of glory. 

But His disciples did not know that, and so He had to prepare them for His departure. 

So, He told them that He will not be with them much longer. 

But He will leave them with something to remember, and that is to love one another, just as He has loved them. 

And by that love for one another, others will know that they are His disciples. 

The disciples remembered those words. They also realized later that those were the departing words of Jesus. 

Those were His final words of goodbye. 

And those parting words of Jesus were understandable, practical and spiritual. 

The early disciples like Paul and Barnabas in the 1st reading carried out their mission with those words. 

With those words of Jesus, they put fresh hearts into the other disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. 

Yes, we must remember those words of Jesus, and that is to love one another as Jesus has loved us. 

And we also remember the parting words of those who have loved us with the love of Jesus. 

We remember the late Pope Francis who said to his personal health assistant, “Thank you for bringing me to the Square.” 

It was there at St. Peter's Square, on Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis imparted his final apostolic blessing on the Church and on the world. As we know Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday.

So, as much as it seemed that Pope Francis said to his personal health assistant, “Thank you for bring me to the Square”, it could also be that he said that to Jesus to thank Jesus for being able to say goodbye to the people and to bless them.

And we also remember our loved ones and what they said to us before parting. 

Many people say “hi” and “bye” in our lives, but there are some who have left echoes of love in our hearts. 

They echo the words of Jesus: Love one another just as I have loved you. 

It is when we love one another as Jesus has loved us, that He will be present to wipe away the tears of our eyes, and there will be no mourning or sadness, but only the joy of loving one another with the love of Jesus.

4th Week of Easter, Monday, 12-05-2025

Acts 11:1-18 / John 10:1-10 

In all aspects of our life, there are certainly many options.

We have a choice of where we want to stay, and what kind of house we want to live in.

We can also choose what we wish to eat, and where to deposit our money and what to invest in.

So, in a world of choices, we have the freedom to choose.

But when it comes to faith and what or who to believe in, we can’t have too many choices or options.

In the gospel, Jesus tells us that He is the gate.

Anyone who enters through Him will be safe.

When we believe in Jesus, then we will also profess Him to be our only Lord and Saviour.

There can be no other besides Jesus.

When we are faithful to Jesus even when the times are hard and the going is rough, He will be faithful in His promises to us.

Jesus promised us that in Him we will have life and life to the full.

Let us believe in Jesus, and in Jesus alone, and we will live life to the full.

4th Sunday of Easter, Year C, 11.05.2025

 Acts 13:14, 43-52 / Apocalypse 7:9, 14-17 / John 10:27-30

Earlier this week, for almost two days, the eyes of the Church, and also the eyes of the world, were looking at something rather ordinary and even archaic. 

The object of interest was a chimney, an ordinary old-fashioned chimney. 

But of course, it is more than just that chimney. It was the smoke, and specifically the colour of the smoke, that comes out of that chimney. 

That chimney goes down to the fireplace where the ballots for the election of the next Pope were burnt. 

And the focus is on the colour of the smoke. Black smoke indicates a negative result. 

White smoke means the next Pope is elected. 

But while the focus was on the chimney and the colour of the smoke, something else appeared, and it lightened up a rather sombre and anxious atmosphere. 

Close to that chimney, three seagulls, including a baby seagull, flew in and perched on the roof. 

So, while all the attention was on that Sistine Chapel's chimney, and on the colour of the smoke, those three seagulls took the attention for a while. 

It seems like those three seagulls got a first row seat as they sat perched on the roof around the chimney, just moments before the chimney bellowed out the white smoke.

The conclave was a moment of deep mystery and spiritual significance. 

But in an age of livestream and news commentaries and interviews, it was the seagulls who seem to know exactly where to look, as well as bringing about a lively and affectionate feeling.

In the gospel, Jesus talked about sheep, and specifically the sheep that belong to Him. 

They will listen to His voice and they will follow Him. 

This weekend, as we give thanks to God for the election of the new Pope Leo XIV, the voice of the Good Shepherd rings out again in the Church. 

Pope Leo XIV listened to the voice of the Good Shepherd and accepted the call. 

We the Church must also listen to that same voice and follow the Good Shepherd. 

And we pray for our mothers and all mothers, that they will listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd and echo that voice to their children. 

And we also pray for those whom the Good Shepherd is calling to serve Him in the priesthood and religious life. 

May they respond willingly and generously. 

But the voice of the Good Shepherd is difficult to listen to, and also difficult to follow. 

The world has many noisy voices, but the voice of the Good Shepherd calls us to make a sacrifice of love, just as He Himself made that ultimate sacrifice of love to save us. 

And since seagulls appeared at the recent conclave, here is a story about a man and seagulls. 

Every Friday evening, almost without fail, an elderly man would stroll along the beach to the pier, carrying a bucket of shrimps. 

He would stand at the end of the pier, alone with his thoughts and his bucket of shrimps. 

But after a while, seagulls would appear from the evening sky, flying towards that elderly man. 

And that man, surrounded by hungry seagulls, would toss the shrimps to feed them, and as he does this, he would keep saying, “Thank you, thank you.” 

That elderly man was Eddie Rickenbacker, who was an ace fighter pilot in World War I, and in World War II he was an advisor to the US Air Force in the Pacific. 

While he was flying with a bomber crew over the Pacific Ocean, the plane developed engine trouble and crash landed into the sea. 

Eddie and seven other crew members managed to get on a lifeboat. After 3 days, the food ran out, and life was draining away. 

They prayed for help. On the 8th day, after prayers, Eddie leaned back to rest. 

As he was dozing off, he felt something landed on his head. Instinctively, he knew it was a bird, and he quickly grabbed and caught it. It was a seagull. 

The men ate the bird, and caught fish with the seagull’s remains. They survived with that, and were rescued 16 days later. 

But Eddie Rickenbacker never forgot how that seagull appeared out of nowhere, and saved them, physically and emotionally. 

From then on, every Friday evening, Eddie Rickenbacker would walk along the beach to the pier, and feed the seagulls from his bucket of shrimps, remembering that seagull which he believed was sent by the Lord. 

So those three seagulls on a roof of the Sistine Chapel told us where to look. 

The sheep in the gospel tells us who to listen to and who to follow. 

May Pope Leo XIV show us who to look at and who to listen to. 

And may we respond to God by offering Him our hearts that are filled with love and thanksgiving.

3rd Sunday of Easter, Year C, 04.05.2025

 Acts 5:27-32, 40-41 / Apocalypse 5:11-14 / John 21:1-19

The elections of our country are over, and we must thank God that elections in our country are peaceful. 

Yes, there are fiery rallies and there are enthusiastic support for the candidates. 

But the real work begins, now that results are announced. 

The promises made at the rallies will have to be fulfilled. 

As for us, the Catholic citizens of Singapore, our work is to pray for our country, and the elected leaders and ministers. 

It is our duty to pray for peace and for the stability of our country, and that we live up to what we pledge as citizens of Singapore. 

But coming up, there is also an equally important and urgent call for prayer. 

This Wednesday, the 7th of May, 133 Cardinals, our Archbishop, Cardinal William Goh, is one of them, will enter the conclave to pray and to elect the next Pope. 

Conclave means “with keys”, and so it means that the conclave is a room that is lockable. 

So, the Cardinals will enter that big room, which is the Sistine Chapel, and then it will be locked. 

And locked away from the world, the Cardinals pray and cast their votes for the next Pope. 

And we, the Church, will also pray that guided by the Holy Spirit, the Cardinals will elect a Pope according to the will of God. 

And we will also pray that the next Pope will lead the Church with the Heart of Jesus. 

And what is the Heart of Jesus like? 

It is the Heart of love and mercy, a Heart that cares for the lowly and the neglected, a Heart that heals the wounded and the hurting. 

And we see that Heart of Jesus in today's Gospel. 

The disciples caught nothing after working all night, and then Jesus came along to tell them where to catch the fish. 

And it is not just catching some fish, but a lot of fish, and that showed the abundance of God's blessings. 

And when they came ashore, the disciples saw that Jesus had prepared breakfast for them. 

And it was after the meal and when their hearts are calmed down, that Jesus asked Peter those three questions. 

Those three questions were not that difficult because it is all about love. 

At this point in time when we stand between the outcome of one election and the outcome of another election, let us come to the core of our faith. 

And the core of our faith is Peter's response to the questions of Jesus: Yes, Lord, You know I love You. 

We love the Lord, and so we pray for our country and our country's leaders, that God will bless us with peace, stability and progress. 

Like the disciples, may we have fish to catch, bread to eat, and love to care and share. 

We love the Lord, and so we pray for the Church and for the next Pope. 

May God bless the next Pope to lead the Church with the Heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd. 

May we always respond with a firm “Yes” to God's love and may we have the courage to go where Jesus is leading us to. 

So, whoever leads our country, and whoever leads the Church, let us always have recourse to prayer, and to remember this:

The will of God will not take us to where the grace of God will not protect us.