Acts 3:13-15, 17-19 / 1 John 2:1-5 / John 24:35-48
Back in the past, in the so-called “good-old-days” one of the activities of the priest was to do home-visits. And because communication back then wasn’t that developed (not every house has a telephone), those home-visits can be surprise-calls. But the surprise can go both ways. It could be a surprise for the family, or it could be a surprise for the priest.
One senior priest, who was from those “good-old-days” was relating how he had to wait outside the main door for 15 min because the family was scrambling to tidy up the house and to get properly dressed.
Those were the “good-old-days”. Now if a priest wants to do home-visits, he has to call and make an appointment with the family, and it can be quite inconvenient for the family – not all are at home, they have to tidy up the house, they have to be properly dressed, etc. So now it’s like: Father, don’t call me, I will call you, if I want you to visit me.
So people will call the priest only when he is needed, e.g. for house-blessing. And talking about house-blessing, this week I had four house-blessings. The reasons for the house-blessing range from wanting the new house to be blessed to strange happenings in the house.
Especially when people think that there are “ghosts” lurking or hiding somewhere in the house. Not everybody believes in ghosts, but everybody seems to be afraid of them. Also during the day, not everybody believes in ghosts, but at night they are more open-minded.
There is a saying “when one door closes, another door opens”; that is of course a figure of speech. But in reality, if one door closes and another door opens by itself, then it’s time to do something, like call for the priest.
Yes, the supernatural or the unexplainable, can make our hair stand and we feel a chill. Whatever it is, we don’t welcome these encounters and it’s best that we don’t have these encounters at all.
Today’s gospel gives an account of an encounter that the disciples had. Two disciples came and told the rest of the disciples what sounded like some kind of ghost story, that they had seen Jesus, who was crucified, died and was buried.
What a story to tell the disciples when they were all hiding in a locked room for fear of the Jews. And while they were talking about all this, Jesus came and stood among them. In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they were seeing a ghost!
And what a situation to be in. They can’t run outside and shout “Ghost! Ghost!” because they will be caught. So there is no choice other than to face this Jesus, whom they thought has come back as a ghost to haunt them for deserting Him during His suffering. That’s quite similar to what most ghost stories are made of.
But that’s also where the “ghost story” ends, when Jesus said to them, “Why are you so agitated, and why are these doubts rising in your hearts? Look at my hands and feet; yes, it is I indeed. Touch me and see for yourselves. A ghost has no flesh and bones as you can see I have.”
Although they couldn’t quite believe it and stood there dumbfounded, yet they were also relieved. What Jesus said to them calmed their fears.
Jesus did not come to haunt them or to settle scores for deserting Him. Although forgiveness was not mentioned, it was understood.
Only when they have calmed down, then they understood those first words of Jesus “Peace be with you.” Only when their hearts were at peace then their minds could be opened to understand the scriptures that spoke of Jesus who would suffer, die and rise from the dead. Jesus is certainly not a ghost!
Whatever our opinion of ghosts may be, the ghosts that often haunt us are the ghosts of our own making. We create these ghosts when we sin, because it is the ghost of our sins that come and haunt us.
For the disciples, their desertion of Jesus in His suffering and death made them think they were seeing a ghost when He appeared to them. But it was their sin that was haunting them.
As for us, we will recall our wrong-doing and how we have sinned against others. Hurting someone can be as easy as throwing a stone into the sea. But we may or may not have an idea of how deep that stone went into the heart of that person.
It may be our parents whom we have neglected or was unkind to when they were alive. Now that they are gone, all the flowers that we put at their niche or tombs would not appease our regrets.
Or the person that we have cheated in a relationship. Seeing that person brings out the ghost of the past and we feel how deep the stone has gone into the heart of that person.
Or how we have schemed to sabotage a person. Our misdeeds haunt us as we think of the revenge that will be taken against us if we are found out.
Yes, the ghost of our sins comes to haunt us even in the daylight and we live in the darkness of regret, anxiety and fear.
But today we hear the words of consolation “Peace be with you”. Jesus wants to forgive us but at the same time we must also pray for forgiveness and to seek forgiveness from the ones we have hurt and done wrong to.
That is what repentance for the forgiveness of sins is about.
It is not easy to embark on repentance for the forgiveness of sins, but it is not impossible. With Jesus nothing is impossible. He came to bring us to repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
He wants to free us from the anxiety and fear of being haunted by the ghost of our sins.
Repentance for the forgiveness of sins is necessary for true peace in our hearts. When there is peace in our hearts, there will be no ghosts to fear.
Click the links under My Blog List to get to Chinese and English weekday homilies.
Saturday, April 14, 2018
Saturday, April 7, 2018
2nd Sunday of Easter, Year B, 08.04.2018
Acts 4:32-35 / 1 John 5:1-6 / John 20:19-31
Generally speaking, a person has five senses – the sense of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and the sense of touch. All these senses are important as they send signals to the brain so that we can respond to what our senses are telling us. There is also the “sixth sense” but that is beyond the scope of science.
Of these five senses, the seeing and the hearing functions are often engaged and that’s why the audio-visual gives us a lot more information about the world around us and about our surroundings.
But with that comes the problem of fake news. Aided by social media and by computer graphics, fake news can spread like wild fire because its intent is to generate excitement and anxiety, regardless of the consequences.
For example, recently there was a video clip circulating on social media about strong tidal waves lashing out at Bedok Jetty. It looked so real, but it turned out to be fake news.
Then on Good Friday (it is said that on Good Friday it always rains around 3pm) it was reported that strong winds destroyed chicken coops in Chua Chu Kang. Singapore rarely has those kinds of strong winds, so it sounded like fake news, until it is reported in the newspapers. That was what happened on Good Friday, and it made some news.
On the religious scene, Good Friday was the day we recalled the suffering, death and burial of Jesus. Then on Easter Sunday we celebrated His Resurrection, which is often called the greatest celebration of our faith.
So we have heard about the Resurrection and we even celebrate it. But how much about the Resurrection do we actually believe in?
For Thomas, who was not there when the Risen Jesus first appeared to the disciples, he did not want to believe it. He thought that the disciples were spreading fake news.
For Thomas, hearing what the rest of the disciples say about the Risen Jesus did not convince him. He retorted with a demand: Unless I see the holes that the nails made in His hands and can put my finger into the holes, and unless I can put my hand into His side, I refuse to believe.
Thomas made such a stark demand because too much had already been demanded from him, with the result that his faith was broken. He had put his faith and hope in Jesus, and that came crashing down when he saw Jesus being crucified, died and was buried.
He was so disappointed that he didn’t even want to be with the rest of the disciples. He didn’t want to be in the misery of their company, since there was nothing to hope for and nothing to believe in anymore.
He wanted to forget about everything and move on. And then the disciples had to tell him this news of the Resurrection.
Of course he won’t believe them. For him to believe them, he stated his demands clearly. He had already been disappointed and it was painful, and he didn’t want to be disappointed again.
Eight long days had to pass before Jesus appeared to them again and this time Thomas was with the rest of the disciples.
Jesus came specially for Thomas and invited him to put his finger into the holes of His hands and to put his hand into His side. Whether Thomas actually did that or not, we are not told.
Thomas only exclaimed: My Lord and my God!
Jesus came to let Thomas touch His wounds. But actually Jesus came to touch the wounds of Thomas. Jesus came to touch his wounds of disappointment and pain, and to heal him of his grievous doubts.
It can be said that the first miracle that the Risen Jesus worked was to heal the heart of Thomas. The proof of that healing was that Thomas made that profound proclamation of faith: My Lord and my God.
Even as we hear all this, it doesn’t mean that we will have no doubts about the Resurrection of Jesus. Though we may not say that the Resurrection is fake news, we have not seen the Risen Jesus or touched His wounds.
And when the troubles and struggles of this world begin to overwhelm us, doubts will arise and shake our faith and even break our hearts.
We get angry with God for not answering our prayers, and we get disappointed with God for not helping us in our needs.
But God is loving and merciful. This Sunday is also called Divine Mercy Sunday.
Jesus knows the doubts in our hearts. He knows the wounds that we have inflicted upon our hearts by our own sins. He wants to touch our hearts with His mercy so that we can be healed.
Healing was the first miracle worked by the Risen Jesus, and the first gift to His disciples was peace, when He said to them, “Peace be with you.”
Healing and peace is what the Risen Jesus wants to give us. That is certainly no fake news. In fact, that is the Good News!
And blessed are we who believe in this Good News from our Risen Saviour.
Generally speaking, a person has five senses – the sense of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and the sense of touch. All these senses are important as they send signals to the brain so that we can respond to what our senses are telling us. There is also the “sixth sense” but that is beyond the scope of science.
Of these five senses, the seeing and the hearing functions are often engaged and that’s why the audio-visual gives us a lot more information about the world around us and about our surroundings.
But with that comes the problem of fake news. Aided by social media and by computer graphics, fake news can spread like wild fire because its intent is to generate excitement and anxiety, regardless of the consequences.
For example, recently there was a video clip circulating on social media about strong tidal waves lashing out at Bedok Jetty. It looked so real, but it turned out to be fake news.
Then on Good Friday (it is said that on Good Friday it always rains around 3pm) it was reported that strong winds destroyed chicken coops in Chua Chu Kang. Singapore rarely has those kinds of strong winds, so it sounded like fake news, until it is reported in the newspapers. That was what happened on Good Friday, and it made some news.
On the religious scene, Good Friday was the day we recalled the suffering, death and burial of Jesus. Then on Easter Sunday we celebrated His Resurrection, which is often called the greatest celebration of our faith.
So we have heard about the Resurrection and we even celebrate it. But how much about the Resurrection do we actually believe in?
For Thomas, who was not there when the Risen Jesus first appeared to the disciples, he did not want to believe it. He thought that the disciples were spreading fake news.
For Thomas, hearing what the rest of the disciples say about the Risen Jesus did not convince him. He retorted with a demand: Unless I see the holes that the nails made in His hands and can put my finger into the holes, and unless I can put my hand into His side, I refuse to believe.
Thomas made such a stark demand because too much had already been demanded from him, with the result that his faith was broken. He had put his faith and hope in Jesus, and that came crashing down when he saw Jesus being crucified, died and was buried.
He was so disappointed that he didn’t even want to be with the rest of the disciples. He didn’t want to be in the misery of their company, since there was nothing to hope for and nothing to believe in anymore.
He wanted to forget about everything and move on. And then the disciples had to tell him this news of the Resurrection.
Of course he won’t believe them. For him to believe them, he stated his demands clearly. He had already been disappointed and it was painful, and he didn’t want to be disappointed again.
Eight long days had to pass before Jesus appeared to them again and this time Thomas was with the rest of the disciples.
Jesus came specially for Thomas and invited him to put his finger into the holes of His hands and to put his hand into His side. Whether Thomas actually did that or not, we are not told.
Thomas only exclaimed: My Lord and my God!
Jesus came to let Thomas touch His wounds. But actually Jesus came to touch the wounds of Thomas. Jesus came to touch his wounds of disappointment and pain, and to heal him of his grievous doubts.
It can be said that the first miracle that the Risen Jesus worked was to heal the heart of Thomas. The proof of that healing was that Thomas made that profound proclamation of faith: My Lord and my God.
Even as we hear all this, it doesn’t mean that we will have no doubts about the Resurrection of Jesus. Though we may not say that the Resurrection is fake news, we have not seen the Risen Jesus or touched His wounds.
And when the troubles and struggles of this world begin to overwhelm us, doubts will arise and shake our faith and even break our hearts.
We get angry with God for not answering our prayers, and we get disappointed with God for not helping us in our needs.
But God is loving and merciful. This Sunday is also called Divine Mercy Sunday.
Jesus knows the doubts in our hearts. He knows the wounds that we have inflicted upon our hearts by our own sins. He wants to touch our hearts with His mercy so that we can be healed.
Healing was the first miracle worked by the Risen Jesus, and the first gift to His disciples was peace, when He said to them, “Peace be with you.”
Healing and peace is what the Risen Jesus wants to give us. That is certainly no fake news. In fact, that is the Good News!
And blessed are we who believe in this Good News from our Risen Saviour.
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Easter Sunday, 01-04-18
Acts 10:34, 37-40 / Colossians 3:1-4 / John 20:1-9
There is a simple game that we are familiar with and it is called “scissor-paper-stone”, played often by children.
It is a game that is usually played between two persons, in which each player simultaneously forms one of the three shapes with an outstretched hand, so it is either a scissor-shape, or a paper-shape, or a stone-shape.
It has only two possible outcomes other than a tie – one player wins and the other player loses. As it goes, one shape will win another but will lose to the other.
So scissors will win the paper because it cuts the paper, but scissors will lose to the stone. Though the stone will win the scissors, it will lose to the paper because paper wraps up the stone.
It is a game of chance in that one player will win and the other will lose, unless both come up with the same shape, in which case then it is a draw.
A rather interesting aspect of the game is that although the stone can win the scissors, yet it loses to the paper, in that the paper will wrap up the stone, at least according to the theory of the game.
In the Resurrection story, there is always the empty tomb and the stone that was used to cover its entrance. That stone made its prominence when it was rolled over the tomb in which Jesus was buried to seal the entrance of the tomb.
That stone was something to be reckoned with, at least it was not so easy to overcome it with paper as in that “scissor-paper-stone” game. Weighing about 2 tons and about 2 meters in diameter, it was rolled at a downward incline and over the entrance of the tomb and sits on a deep groove, thus effectively sealing the tomb.
Moving the stone from the entrance of the tomb is not impossible, but that is certainly not an easy task, and there is no need to. Once it is rolled over the entrance of the tomb, it is sealed and it is case-closed, not to be reopened. It can be effectively called a tomb-stone.
In a way, it can be said that it was the final stone that the enemies of Jesus threw at Him to make sure that He was dead and gone.
But from a tomb-stone, Jesus made it into a stepping-stone that revealed the Resurrection. The stone was rolled away to reveal an empty tomb. Jesus is not there, and it is not because we do not know what happened. We believe that He is risen.
The stone that is rolled away, and the empty tomb are just signs, but it is with faith that we believe that Jesus is risen.
It is also with faith that we look at life and think of how to respond to the stones that are thrown at us and that lay before us in the path of life.
Those stones can either be stumbling blocks or stepping-stones. Those stones can force us into the tomb and cover us up, or we can ask Jesus to roll away those stones and bring us to new life.
So with those stones, we can choose to make them into tomb-stones, and that would be a “case-closed” and a dead end. That was what they intended to do with Jesus.
But with those same stones, we can choose to make them into stepping-stones that lead us to understand the Resurrection of Jesus, and stepping-stones to the new life that the Risen Jesus wants to give us so that we become living stones in the hands of Jesus, living stones that He can use as stepping-stones for others to come to know Him and believe in Him.
In that “scissor-paper-stone” game, the stone “loses” to the paper. Now for the stones that are thrown at us and those stumbling blocks of stone that lie in our path, let us wrap them up with paper.
Not just any ordinary paper but with these petition-slips that are always available at the entrance of the church.
Let us write down on these petition-slips those hurting and stumbling blocks of stone in our lives and put these pieces of paper into the petition box to offer them to Jesus.
Every Friday at the evening Mass, we offer up those petitions in the petition-box to Jesus.
And as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus, I also want to testify that the Risen Jesus will receive our petitions, He will hear our prayers, and He will answer them.
Simply because He is risen, and He wants us to rise with Him and to be living stones building up His Church.
Jesus also wants us to be stepping-stones for others to come to Him and believe in His Resurrection.
We believe that Jesus is our Risen Saviour. Let us proclaim this Good News to those who are still living in their tombs and waiting for the stone to be removed.
There is a simple game that we are familiar with and it is called “scissor-paper-stone”, played often by children.
It is a game that is usually played between two persons, in which each player simultaneously forms one of the three shapes with an outstretched hand, so it is either a scissor-shape, or a paper-shape, or a stone-shape.
It has only two possible outcomes other than a tie – one player wins and the other player loses. As it goes, one shape will win another but will lose to the other.
So scissors will win the paper because it cuts the paper, but scissors will lose to the stone. Though the stone will win the scissors, it will lose to the paper because paper wraps up the stone.
It is a game of chance in that one player will win and the other will lose, unless both come up with the same shape, in which case then it is a draw.
A rather interesting aspect of the game is that although the stone can win the scissors, yet it loses to the paper, in that the paper will wrap up the stone, at least according to the theory of the game.
In the Resurrection story, there is always the empty tomb and the stone that was used to cover its entrance. That stone made its prominence when it was rolled over the tomb in which Jesus was buried to seal the entrance of the tomb.
That stone was something to be reckoned with, at least it was not so easy to overcome it with paper as in that “scissor-paper-stone” game. Weighing about 2 tons and about 2 meters in diameter, it was rolled at a downward incline and over the entrance of the tomb and sits on a deep groove, thus effectively sealing the tomb.
Moving the stone from the entrance of the tomb is not impossible, but that is certainly not an easy task, and there is no need to. Once it is rolled over the entrance of the tomb, it is sealed and it is case-closed, not to be reopened. It can be effectively called a tomb-stone.
In a way, it can be said that it was the final stone that the enemies of Jesus threw at Him to make sure that He was dead and gone.
But from a tomb-stone, Jesus made it into a stepping-stone that revealed the Resurrection. The stone was rolled away to reveal an empty tomb. Jesus is not there, and it is not because we do not know what happened. We believe that He is risen.
The stone that is rolled away, and the empty tomb are just signs, but it is with faith that we believe that Jesus is risen.
It is also with faith that we look at life and think of how to respond to the stones that are thrown at us and that lay before us in the path of life.
Those stones can either be stumbling blocks or stepping-stones. Those stones can force us into the tomb and cover us up, or we can ask Jesus to roll away those stones and bring us to new life.
So with those stones, we can choose to make them into tomb-stones, and that would be a “case-closed” and a dead end. That was what they intended to do with Jesus.
But with those same stones, we can choose to make them into stepping-stones that lead us to understand the Resurrection of Jesus, and stepping-stones to the new life that the Risen Jesus wants to give us so that we become living stones in the hands of Jesus, living stones that He can use as stepping-stones for others to come to know Him and believe in Him.
In that “scissor-paper-stone” game, the stone “loses” to the paper. Now for the stones that are thrown at us and those stumbling blocks of stone that lie in our path, let us wrap them up with paper.
Not just any ordinary paper but with these petition-slips that are always available at the entrance of the church.
Let us write down on these petition-slips those hurting and stumbling blocks of stone in our lives and put these pieces of paper into the petition box to offer them to Jesus.
Every Friday at the evening Mass, we offer up those petitions in the petition-box to Jesus.
And as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus, I also want to testify that the Risen Jesus will receive our petitions, He will hear our prayers, and He will answer them.
Simply because He is risen, and He wants us to rise with Him and to be living stones building up His Church.
Jesus also wants us to be stepping-stones for others to come to Him and believe in His Resurrection.
We believe that Jesus is our Risen Saviour. Let us proclaim this Good News to those who are still living in their tombs and waiting for the stone to be removed.
Saturday, March 24, 2018
Palm Sunday, Year B, 25.03.2018
This Sunday is commonly known as Palm Sunday. So coming for Mass and getting a blessed palm branch and bringing it home is what this Sunday means to us.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the crowds waved leafy palm branches to welcome Him with “Hosanna in the highest.”
But we must remember that with Palm Sunday, we enter into Holy Week. Although commonly known as Palm Sunday, this Sunday is also known as Passion Sunday, and the long gospel reading recalls the suffering and death of Jesus.
This Sunday prepares us for what is coming up this week – Holy Thursday when we remember Jesus giving us His Body and Blood at the Last Supper, and Good Friday when we recall how Jesus suffered and died for us on the cross.
The blessing and waving of the palm branches at the beginning of the Mass moved on to the suffering and death of Jesus.
So Palm Sunday has quite a bit to tell us about life. Happiness will give way to sadness, fitness will give way to illness, glory will give way to agony.
What we are so certain and sure about will be put to the test – promises, faithfulness, courage, commitment. All that will be put to the test and may be found wanting and lacking.
Yet Palm Sunday has a revelation for us. The crowds hailed Jesus with “Hosanna in the highest”. Then they demanded “Crucify him!” Jesus was mocked and jeered at.
But the revelation comes at the end, and it comes from an unexpected person. It was the centurion, a pagan, who proclaimed who Jesus really was: “In truth this man was the son of God”.
As we journey with Jesus in His suffering and death during Holy Week, may we also receive a revelation of who He truly is and who we are to Him.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the crowds waved leafy palm branches to welcome Him with “Hosanna in the highest.”
But we must remember that with Palm Sunday, we enter into Holy Week. Although commonly known as Palm Sunday, this Sunday is also known as Passion Sunday, and the long gospel reading recalls the suffering and death of Jesus.
This Sunday prepares us for what is coming up this week – Holy Thursday when we remember Jesus giving us His Body and Blood at the Last Supper, and Good Friday when we recall how Jesus suffered and died for us on the cross.
The blessing and waving of the palm branches at the beginning of the Mass moved on to the suffering and death of Jesus.
So Palm Sunday has quite a bit to tell us about life. Happiness will give way to sadness, fitness will give way to illness, glory will give way to agony.
What we are so certain and sure about will be put to the test – promises, faithfulness, courage, commitment. All that will be put to the test and may be found wanting and lacking.
Yet Palm Sunday has a revelation for us. The crowds hailed Jesus with “Hosanna in the highest”. Then they demanded “Crucify him!” Jesus was mocked and jeered at.
But the revelation comes at the end, and it comes from an unexpected person. It was the centurion, a pagan, who proclaimed who Jesus really was: “In truth this man was the son of God”.
As we journey with Jesus in His suffering and death during Holy Week, may we also receive a revelation of who He truly is and who we are to Him.
Saturday, March 17, 2018
5th Sunday of Lent, Year B, 18.03.2018
Jeremiah 31:31-34 / Hebrews 5:7-9 / John 12:20-33
Most offices would have a secretary as part of their admin staff. Depending on the size of the office, the secretary’s tasks can be varied and diverse.
The often stereotyped tasks of a secretary is to make coffee for the boss, make shorthand notes as the boss rambles on, answer phone-calls, arrange the boss’s schedules, takes charge of the office admin, etc.
The secretary is often portrayed as the one who stands between the boss and visitors. So if someone comes to see the boss, the secretary would tell the visitor to wait and proceed to inform the boss.
Actually it is more like to alert the boss that there is a visitor, so that the boss can be prepared to meet the visitor. And of course the boss would want to look his best and give a good impression to the visitor.
And the secretary’s task is to ensure that. So a good secretary is vital for the boss and for the running of the office admin.
Today’s gospel begins with some Greeks approaching Philip with a request that they would like to see Jesus. Philip went to tell Andrew and together they went to tell Jesus.
Those Greeks may have heard about Jesus, how He worked miracles and performed healing, how He taught with authority, and they were certainly impressed with what they heard and hence they wanted to see the man for themselves.
And Philip and Andrew would also want Jesus to look His best and give those Greeks a good impression. After all Jesus was their Master, so if He looked good, then they too would look good, going by “like Master, like disciple”.
But the reply of Jesus was rather strange. At first He says that the hour has come for Him to be glorified. So they would have thought that He was going to give those Greeks a profound impression.
But what followed after does not seem to sound like anything impressive. Jesus talked about a wheat grain having to die in order to yield a rich harvest.
He went on to give a reflection about life, that anyone who loves his life loses it and anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
And then He went on to say that His soul is troubled and He seemed to wonder if God would save Him. By those words, He indicated the kind of death He would die.
That would have left Philip and Andrew rather confused and apprehensive. Just what are they going to tell those Greeks. What Jesus said was far from impressive; in fact it sounded rather repulsive.
If they had expected Jesus to impress those Greeks, they would be disappointed. And those Greeks would be disappointed too.
Philip and Andrew might not have understood what Jesus was talking about. But we should understand. As we come to the 5th Sunday of Lent, we should know what was the preoccupation in the mind of Jesus. He was preoccupied with His impending suffering and death.
The 2nd reading gives us a glimpse of Jesus that we don’t often hear about. During His life on earth, Christ offered up prayer and entreaty, aloud and in silent tears, to the One who had the power to save Him out of death, and He submitted so humbly that His prayer was heard.
So although He was Son, He learnt to obey through suffering, but having been made perfect, He became for all who obey Him the source of eternal salvation.
Next Sunday, the Church enters into Holy Week, with the emphasis on the suffering and death of Jesus. For the RCIA Elects, this week is the final leg of their preparation for Baptism, as they undergo purification and receive enlightenment through the final Scrutiny.
As for us, we enter into the mind of Jesus as He dwells on His impending suffering and death. It was a mental burden for Him as He says, “Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? Father, save me from this hour?
We would also be led to think about what is burdening our minds and what is troubling our hearts.
In life, there are many burdens and many troubles. It may be financial difficulties, job insecurity, health issues, marital problems, family problems. Yes, in life there are many burdens and troubles.
And ironically, many of these burdens and troubles are not even ours, but they somehow landed on our turf. And here is where we are called to be like Jesus, and to be with Jesus, in sacrificing our lives for the good and for the salvation of others.
A wise man was asked this question – What is the heaviest burden and the greatest trouble in life?
The wise man answered: The heaviest burden and the greatest trouble is to have no burden and no trouble at all.
We may think it is a weird answer. It doesn’t sound logical, at least initially. But upon deeper reflection, we will come to realize that if life has no burdens or troubles, then we are going to be like dead fish that just go with the flow and end up as sludge.
But like Jesus, we want to believe that burdens and troubles, suffering and pain, are not dead ends. Because like Jesus, we believe that God has the power to save us out of death. God has the power to save us and help us overcome our burdens and troubles, our suffering and pain.
Jesus has already overcome the world. Let us believe in Him and follow Him to overcome our burdens and troubles. Let us show the world who Jesus really is. It is not to make an impression but to show our conviction.
Most offices would have a secretary as part of their admin staff. Depending on the size of the office, the secretary’s tasks can be varied and diverse.
The often stereotyped tasks of a secretary is to make coffee for the boss, make shorthand notes as the boss rambles on, answer phone-calls, arrange the boss’s schedules, takes charge of the office admin, etc.
The secretary is often portrayed as the one who stands between the boss and visitors. So if someone comes to see the boss, the secretary would tell the visitor to wait and proceed to inform the boss.
Actually it is more like to alert the boss that there is a visitor, so that the boss can be prepared to meet the visitor. And of course the boss would want to look his best and give a good impression to the visitor.
And the secretary’s task is to ensure that. So a good secretary is vital for the boss and for the running of the office admin.
Today’s gospel begins with some Greeks approaching Philip with a request that they would like to see Jesus. Philip went to tell Andrew and together they went to tell Jesus.
Those Greeks may have heard about Jesus, how He worked miracles and performed healing, how He taught with authority, and they were certainly impressed with what they heard and hence they wanted to see the man for themselves.
And Philip and Andrew would also want Jesus to look His best and give those Greeks a good impression. After all Jesus was their Master, so if He looked good, then they too would look good, going by “like Master, like disciple”.
But the reply of Jesus was rather strange. At first He says that the hour has come for Him to be glorified. So they would have thought that He was going to give those Greeks a profound impression.
But what followed after does not seem to sound like anything impressive. Jesus talked about a wheat grain having to die in order to yield a rich harvest.
He went on to give a reflection about life, that anyone who loves his life loses it and anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
And then He went on to say that His soul is troubled and He seemed to wonder if God would save Him. By those words, He indicated the kind of death He would die.
That would have left Philip and Andrew rather confused and apprehensive. Just what are they going to tell those Greeks. What Jesus said was far from impressive; in fact it sounded rather repulsive.
If they had expected Jesus to impress those Greeks, they would be disappointed. And those Greeks would be disappointed too.
Philip and Andrew might not have understood what Jesus was talking about. But we should understand. As we come to the 5th Sunday of Lent, we should know what was the preoccupation in the mind of Jesus. He was preoccupied with His impending suffering and death.
The 2nd reading gives us a glimpse of Jesus that we don’t often hear about. During His life on earth, Christ offered up prayer and entreaty, aloud and in silent tears, to the One who had the power to save Him out of death, and He submitted so humbly that His prayer was heard.
So although He was Son, He learnt to obey through suffering, but having been made perfect, He became for all who obey Him the source of eternal salvation.
Next Sunday, the Church enters into Holy Week, with the emphasis on the suffering and death of Jesus. For the RCIA Elects, this week is the final leg of their preparation for Baptism, as they undergo purification and receive enlightenment through the final Scrutiny.
As for us, we enter into the mind of Jesus as He dwells on His impending suffering and death. It was a mental burden for Him as He says, “Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say? Father, save me from this hour?
We would also be led to think about what is burdening our minds and what is troubling our hearts.
In life, there are many burdens and many troubles. It may be financial difficulties, job insecurity, health issues, marital problems, family problems. Yes, in life there are many burdens and troubles.
And ironically, many of these burdens and troubles are not even ours, but they somehow landed on our turf. And here is where we are called to be like Jesus, and to be with Jesus, in sacrificing our lives for the good and for the salvation of others.
A wise man was asked this question – What is the heaviest burden and the greatest trouble in life?
The wise man answered: The heaviest burden and the greatest trouble is to have no burden and no trouble at all.
We may think it is a weird answer. It doesn’t sound logical, at least initially. But upon deeper reflection, we will come to realize that if life has no burdens or troubles, then we are going to be like dead fish that just go with the flow and end up as sludge.
But like Jesus, we want to believe that burdens and troubles, suffering and pain, are not dead ends. Because like Jesus, we believe that God has the power to save us out of death. God has the power to save us and help us overcome our burdens and troubles, our suffering and pain.
Jesus has already overcome the world. Let us believe in Him and follow Him to overcome our burdens and troubles. Let us show the world who Jesus really is. It is not to make an impression but to show our conviction.
Saturday, March 10, 2018
4th Sunday of Lent, Year B, 11.03.2018
2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23 / Ephesians 2:4-10 / John 3:14-21
The means of communication have come a long way, with developments and advancements in communication technology.
From the primitive smoke signals and sound signals, things have developed rapidly with the discovery of electricity. There was the Morse code, and then the telegram (a present messaging app has the same name), and letters in the mail have been overtaken by email.
But a wonderful invention is the telephone, where it is real-time voice communication. Even that has developed from the fixed line phone to cordless phone and then to the mobile phone, with not only voice communication but with video calls, i.e. with sight and sound. Communication has become so amazing with technology.
But with the advancement of mobile communication technology, the sense of intrusion has also become greater.
When the phone rings, it may ring at the most inconvenient time, e.g. at a meeting, when you are cooking, or eating with both hand, or bathing. And it might be from people that you would hesitate to answer, because with caller ID, you now know who is calling and you just don’t feel like answering the call.
There are a few fears when you have a mobile phone. For example, when you get 10 missed calls from your mother, or 5 missed calls from the boss, or 5 missed calls from the wife. The only way to quell the anxiety is to return the call. Either that or you fake a phone loss. But you can’t do that more than twice.
The 1st reading gives an account of numerous unanswered calls. But it was not any ordinary call. It was God calling out to His people.
The people had committed infidelity after infidelity, copying all the shameful practices of the other nations, and defiling the Temple that the Lord had consecrated for Himself in Jerusalem.
The Lord tirelessly sent messenger after messenger, since He wished to spare His people and His House. But they ridiculed the messengers of God, they despised His words, they laughed at His prophets, until at last the wrath of the Lord rose so high against His people that there was no further remedy.
And with that, it was disaster and tragedy. The enemies burned down the Temple of God, and went on to demolish and destroy the city, and the survivors were exiled to a foreign country.
It was a national disaster as well as a personal tragedy. All because of unanswered calls. If only the people had answered the calls from God.
Ironically, where it was the people of God who rejected God’s call, it was a pagan ruler who showed them how to respond to God’s call.
The people’s rejection of God’s call led to their destruction. Now God is calling them, through a pagan instrument, and calling them back to restoration. How they would respond is their call, so to speak.
The lesson that we must learn from the 1st reading is that God’s call is to repentance and conversion. And it is always a call of love because God wants to spare His people and His House.
The 2nd reading reiterates that truth. God loves us with so much love and He was generous with His mercy, that when we were dead through our sins, He brought us to life through Jesus.
And we must listen to that – God loves us with so much love! And that is also what Jesus is saying in the gospel: God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not be lost but may have eternal life.
The message is loud and clear – God loves us so much, and He also calls out to us with so much love, so that we will realize that we are God’s work of love, created in Christ Jesus, to live the good life as from the beginning He had meant us to live it.
And we hear those love calls from God. There is the call to come back to Him and be reconciled. This coming week is the Penitential Service for the parishes in the City District. Will we respond to God’s call and to be reconciled with Him in the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
There is also the call to serve. The parish is in need of catechists, so that the young will be taught about the love of God. Will we be willing to think about it and see how we can respond to the call to share God’s love with the young?
Besides that, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP) is in need of members to serve the poor. The numbers of the Friends-In-Need have increased and with that the expenses have increased.
But the members of the SSVP have not increased much, and so very often they are short-handed when it comes to delivering rations to the home-bound. So that’s another area that God is calling out to us. Will we be willing to answer the call to serve Christ in the poor?
And there is the call to give. We have already received the Charities Week envelopes. Are we just going to leave those envelopes aside, or will we respond by giving and sharing with those who are less fortunate.
God so loved the world, and He loves us with so much love that He gave us His only Son, Jesus.
And Jesus is calling us to love and to serve. Let us not fear to answer His call. It is a call of love and a call to love.
May we answer that call so that we will be able to live the good life that God had meant us to live it.
The means of communication have come a long way, with developments and advancements in communication technology.
From the primitive smoke signals and sound signals, things have developed rapidly with the discovery of electricity. There was the Morse code, and then the telegram (a present messaging app has the same name), and letters in the mail have been overtaken by email.
But a wonderful invention is the telephone, where it is real-time voice communication. Even that has developed from the fixed line phone to cordless phone and then to the mobile phone, with not only voice communication but with video calls, i.e. with sight and sound. Communication has become so amazing with technology.
But with the advancement of mobile communication technology, the sense of intrusion has also become greater.
When the phone rings, it may ring at the most inconvenient time, e.g. at a meeting, when you are cooking, or eating with both hand, or bathing. And it might be from people that you would hesitate to answer, because with caller ID, you now know who is calling and you just don’t feel like answering the call.
There are a few fears when you have a mobile phone. For example, when you get 10 missed calls from your mother, or 5 missed calls from the boss, or 5 missed calls from the wife. The only way to quell the anxiety is to return the call. Either that or you fake a phone loss. But you can’t do that more than twice.
The 1st reading gives an account of numerous unanswered calls. But it was not any ordinary call. It was God calling out to His people.
The people had committed infidelity after infidelity, copying all the shameful practices of the other nations, and defiling the Temple that the Lord had consecrated for Himself in Jerusalem.
The Lord tirelessly sent messenger after messenger, since He wished to spare His people and His House. But they ridiculed the messengers of God, they despised His words, they laughed at His prophets, until at last the wrath of the Lord rose so high against His people that there was no further remedy.
And with that, it was disaster and tragedy. The enemies burned down the Temple of God, and went on to demolish and destroy the city, and the survivors were exiled to a foreign country.
It was a national disaster as well as a personal tragedy. All because of unanswered calls. If only the people had answered the calls from God.
Ironically, where it was the people of God who rejected God’s call, it was a pagan ruler who showed them how to respond to God’s call.
The people’s rejection of God’s call led to their destruction. Now God is calling them, through a pagan instrument, and calling them back to restoration. How they would respond is their call, so to speak.
The lesson that we must learn from the 1st reading is that God’s call is to repentance and conversion. And it is always a call of love because God wants to spare His people and His House.
The 2nd reading reiterates that truth. God loves us with so much love and He was generous with His mercy, that when we were dead through our sins, He brought us to life through Jesus.
And we must listen to that – God loves us with so much love! And that is also what Jesus is saying in the gospel: God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not be lost but may have eternal life.
The message is loud and clear – God loves us so much, and He also calls out to us with so much love, so that we will realize that we are God’s work of love, created in Christ Jesus, to live the good life as from the beginning He had meant us to live it.
And we hear those love calls from God. There is the call to come back to Him and be reconciled. This coming week is the Penitential Service for the parishes in the City District. Will we respond to God’s call and to be reconciled with Him in the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
There is also the call to serve. The parish is in need of catechists, so that the young will be taught about the love of God. Will we be willing to think about it and see how we can respond to the call to share God’s love with the young?
Besides that, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP) is in need of members to serve the poor. The numbers of the Friends-In-Need have increased and with that the expenses have increased.
But the members of the SSVP have not increased much, and so very often they are short-handed when it comes to delivering rations to the home-bound. So that’s another area that God is calling out to us. Will we be willing to answer the call to serve Christ in the poor?
And there is the call to give. We have already received the Charities Week envelopes. Are we just going to leave those envelopes aside, or will we respond by giving and sharing with those who are less fortunate.
God so loved the world, and He loves us with so much love that He gave us His only Son, Jesus.
And Jesus is calling us to love and to serve. Let us not fear to answer His call. It is a call of love and a call to love.
May we answer that call so that we will be able to live the good life that God had meant us to live it.
Saturday, March 3, 2018
3rd Sunday of Lent, Year B, 04.03.2018
Exodus 20:1-17 / 1 Cor 1:22-25 / John 2:13-25
I can’t say if I am imagining things or what, but it seems to me that quite a number of people are down with flu-like symptoms – cough, sore-throat, running-nose, headache.
Maybe because I was having all these over the past week, and so that’s making me imagine that many others are also afflicted. After all misery needs company. So I would like to think that I am not the only one who is under the weather.
But also with those festive “goodies” like pineapple-tarts, bak kwa, cookies and all those “sinful” food, how not to come down with cough, sore-throat, running-nose, headache? So I don’t think I am imagining.
But imagination aside and not wanting to lose my voice over the weekend, I went to the Chinese medical hall to see what quick remedy there can be for my misery. And the shop attendant recommended me a pre-packed combination of herbs in a plastic box.
As I was looking at the contents in the box, I was rather alarmed to see what looks like a beetle, with wings and all, nicely packed with the other contents. I presumed that the quality control failed, and that’s how that beetle got in there.
But the attendant said that it was part of the herbal combination and when it is brewed properly, it is very effective for voice-loss and sore-throat.
People complain when there is a fly in their soup. I am going to have a beetle in my brew. Chinese remedies are just so strange. Anyway I decided to give that beetle-brew a try. I guessed it worked, since I can be here preaching. But I have to admit that drinking the beetle-brew feels rather squirmish, and it tastes yukky-yuks.
In today’s gospel, what Jesus did may make us squirm a bit. The usually gentle, compassionate, merciful Jesus has become a whip-lashing, Indiana Jones-style, driving out sheep and cattle, scattered the money-changers coins, knocked their tables over, and not sparing the pigeon-sellers.
That is a very angry and violent Jesus, and like the people who were doing business in the Temple courtyard, we too would be alarmed and disturbed by His actions.
But it was not an impulsive act. As Jesus made the whip out of some cord, He knew what He was going to do and He intended to make His actions felt.
And He stated His reason for doing this: “Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father’s house into a market.”
The market was just the façade. The reality was that there was wheeling-and-dealing, cheating and bribing, injustice and extortion. All that carried out under the pretext of religious requirements, and with the knowledge and condoned by the Temple authorities.
With that kind of corruption in the Temple, Jesus had to do something drastic. Corruption was happening right at God’s house. He had to cleanse the Temple, so that the ordinary people can come and truly worship God and offer a worthy sacrifice.
Sin and corruption had to be driven out and cleansed before true worship can take place.
Today’s gospel tells us that Jesus takes a serious stand against sin and corruption. Jesus is the Head and we are members of His Body. We gather as members of His Body to offer worship to God at Mass.
And He knows each of us. He knows what each of us has in us. The true character of a person is not what he does when others are looking but by what he does when no one is looking.
And so we have to look at ourselves and acknowledge the sin and corruption that is within us, and to let Jesus cleanse us of that sin and corruption.
That is why it is necessary to do an “Examination of conscience” at least once a day, so that that we can see for ourselves what are our sins and our faults.
And that’s why it is also necessary to go for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or Confession. It is a healing Sacrament, because Jesus forgives and cleanses us of our sins so that we can be reconciled with God.
If we know that there is rubbish in our hearts, then why are we not getting rid of it? Why are we letting that sinful rubbish corrupt our lives and corrupt our worship of God?
There is this story about St. Jerome. He was the one who translated the Hebrew scriptures into the Latin Vulgate. One day he had a vision of Jesus, and he was in ecstasy, and so he exclaimed : Lord, I want to give You all my intelligence, all my time, all my energy, my life even.
Jesus replied : Good, I don't need all that.
St. Jerome became a bit upset and so he asked : Lord Jesus, then what do You want from me?
Jesus said : I want your sins. Give me all your sins.
Yes, Jesus wants us to surrender our sins to Him so that He can cleanse us and that we can offer worthy worship to God. With a clean heart, we can offer worthy worship and hence, receive blessings from God.
In surrendering our sins to Jesus, the Lord our God says this to us: For I will restore your health and heal you of your wounds (Jeremiah 30:17)
Our sins and our spiritual corruption have caused us to be spiritually weak and maybe even physically afflicted. So let us go for Confession and let Jesus cleanse our souls.
Let us also do penance to invoke God’s healing grace. There is no need to drink some beetle-juice concoction to bring about cleansing and healing. The Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving will accomplish that.
Let our prayer and worship be from humble and contrite hearts so that God’s House will truly be a House of prayer and that we, the People of God, will truly be a people of prayer and a channel of God’s blessings for the world.
I can’t say if I am imagining things or what, but it seems to me that quite a number of people are down with flu-like symptoms – cough, sore-throat, running-nose, headache.
Maybe because I was having all these over the past week, and so that’s making me imagine that many others are also afflicted. After all misery needs company. So I would like to think that I am not the only one who is under the weather.
But also with those festive “goodies” like pineapple-tarts, bak kwa, cookies and all those “sinful” food, how not to come down with cough, sore-throat, running-nose, headache? So I don’t think I am imagining.
But imagination aside and not wanting to lose my voice over the weekend, I went to the Chinese medical hall to see what quick remedy there can be for my misery. And the shop attendant recommended me a pre-packed combination of herbs in a plastic box.
As I was looking at the contents in the box, I was rather alarmed to see what looks like a beetle, with wings and all, nicely packed with the other contents. I presumed that the quality control failed, and that’s how that beetle got in there.
But the attendant said that it was part of the herbal combination and when it is brewed properly, it is very effective for voice-loss and sore-throat.
People complain when there is a fly in their soup. I am going to have a beetle in my brew. Chinese remedies are just so strange. Anyway I decided to give that beetle-brew a try. I guessed it worked, since I can be here preaching. But I have to admit that drinking the beetle-brew feels rather squirmish, and it tastes yukky-yuks.
In today’s gospel, what Jesus did may make us squirm a bit. The usually gentle, compassionate, merciful Jesus has become a whip-lashing, Indiana Jones-style, driving out sheep and cattle, scattered the money-changers coins, knocked their tables over, and not sparing the pigeon-sellers.
That is a very angry and violent Jesus, and like the people who were doing business in the Temple courtyard, we too would be alarmed and disturbed by His actions.
But it was not an impulsive act. As Jesus made the whip out of some cord, He knew what He was going to do and He intended to make His actions felt.
And He stated His reason for doing this: “Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father’s house into a market.”
The market was just the façade. The reality was that there was wheeling-and-dealing, cheating and bribing, injustice and extortion. All that carried out under the pretext of religious requirements, and with the knowledge and condoned by the Temple authorities.
With that kind of corruption in the Temple, Jesus had to do something drastic. Corruption was happening right at God’s house. He had to cleanse the Temple, so that the ordinary people can come and truly worship God and offer a worthy sacrifice.
Sin and corruption had to be driven out and cleansed before true worship can take place.
Today’s gospel tells us that Jesus takes a serious stand against sin and corruption. Jesus is the Head and we are members of His Body. We gather as members of His Body to offer worship to God at Mass.
And He knows each of us. He knows what each of us has in us. The true character of a person is not what he does when others are looking but by what he does when no one is looking.
And so we have to look at ourselves and acknowledge the sin and corruption that is within us, and to let Jesus cleanse us of that sin and corruption.
That is why it is necessary to do an “Examination of conscience” at least once a day, so that that we can see for ourselves what are our sins and our faults.
And that’s why it is also necessary to go for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or Confession. It is a healing Sacrament, because Jesus forgives and cleanses us of our sins so that we can be reconciled with God.
If we know that there is rubbish in our hearts, then why are we not getting rid of it? Why are we letting that sinful rubbish corrupt our lives and corrupt our worship of God?
There is this story about St. Jerome. He was the one who translated the Hebrew scriptures into the Latin Vulgate. One day he had a vision of Jesus, and he was in ecstasy, and so he exclaimed : Lord, I want to give You all my intelligence, all my time, all my energy, my life even.
Jesus replied : Good, I don't need all that.
St. Jerome became a bit upset and so he asked : Lord Jesus, then what do You want from me?
Jesus said : I want your sins. Give me all your sins.
Yes, Jesus wants us to surrender our sins to Him so that He can cleanse us and that we can offer worthy worship to God. With a clean heart, we can offer worthy worship and hence, receive blessings from God.
In surrendering our sins to Jesus, the Lord our God says this to us: For I will restore your health and heal you of your wounds (Jeremiah 30:17)
Our sins and our spiritual corruption have caused us to be spiritually weak and maybe even physically afflicted. So let us go for Confession and let Jesus cleanse our souls.
Let us also do penance to invoke God’s healing grace. There is no need to drink some beetle-juice concoction to bring about cleansing and healing. The Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgiving will accomplish that.
Let our prayer and worship be from humble and contrite hearts so that God’s House will truly be a House of prayer and that we, the People of God, will truly be a people of prayer and a channel of God’s blessings for the world.
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