Saturday of Week 27 Year 2

One reality in modern society is that, no matter where we go, we would encounter laws and regulations. Such laws need to be observed, for the good of all, otherwise there would be chaos. Such laws are supposed to protect those who follow what is stipulated and also to deter wrong-doing. Thus, the law is like our guardian and it is expressed in the form of law-enforcement officers, and in some cases, the courts may come into the picture.

In today's reading, St. Paul said that the Law was the guardian of the people until Jesus Christ came along and then they could be justified by faith. The Law was there for the people to keep to it and follow it. Yet the problem here is that, by just keeping to the precepts of the Law, people could be doing so without any faith and only out of fear, instead of out of love and out of a desire to grow closer to God. With Jesus, we are justified by faith and are no longer under the law as our guardian, but we become sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

The question is: are we still keeping the law out of fear and just to get ourselves out of trouble; or have we grown in faith in Jesus, and keep the law out of love? Are we keeping the law only for the sake of keeping it to protect ourselves from punishment, or have we learnt to let Jesus be our guiding "law," so that we would become more and more like Him? May we learn to follow the law of love, letting Jesus be our help an guide.

Saturday of Week 27 Year 1

I sometimes come across persons who like to make lots of suggestions or complaints, but when they are asked whether they would be willing to get involved and improve things, they begin to make lots of excuses and dare not commit themselves. They prefer to remain as keyboard warriors or only talk or complain, but are unwilling to offer themselves to bring about change and progress. I recall several people asking when a building complex would eventually be built, to provide more classrooms, meeting rooms, and facilities for the parish. When asked whether such persons would be willing to be part of the building committee, and work towards gathering funds so that such a building complex may eventually be realised, such persons would quickly excuse themselves from being involved, or even try to change the topic altogether.

In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us: "Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!" It is fine and good to hear the word of God, but just hearing the word of God won't mean anything, if we do not internalise it, ponder upon it, and share it with others. In other words, we should not just talk or hear without action. May we not keep the word of God to ourselves, but go forth and preach the Good News, just as what Jesus commanded us to do.

Wednesday of Week 27 Year 1

It is easy for many of us to seek forgiveness from God, especially when we have committed sin or wrong doing. Some of us make it a point to go for confession, asking God to forgive our sins and we have trust and confidence that He would do so. But what about when it comes to others who have sinned against us? Are we just as forgiving towards others, just as we ask God to be forgiving towards us? Do we expect forgiveness only from God, and remain vengeful towards others or even shun them?

In today's Gospel, we are reminded: "and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive each one who is in debt to us." This means that forgiveness is not a one way street, where we expect forgiveness from God, but we can ignore others, or remain vengeful, or dwell in hurt towards others. Forgiveness, rather, works both ways, where we are expected to forgive others, just as we expect God's forgiveness. Are we willing to make forgiving a habit, and forgive others just as God forgives us?

Saturday of Week 27 Year 2

No matter where we go, we would encounter laws and regulations. Each country, each state, each city, town or suburb would have certain laws that need to be observed, for the good of all. Such laws are supposed to protect those who follow what is stipulated and also deters wrong-doing. Thus, the law is like our guardian and it is expressed in the form of law-enforcement officers, and sometimes the courts may come into the picture.

In today's reading, St. Paul said that the Law was the guardian of the people until Jesus Christ came along and then they could be justified by faith. The Law was there for the people to keep to it and follow it. Yet the problem here seemed like in just keeping to the precepts of the Law, people could be doing so without any faith and only out of fear, instead of out of love and out of a desire to grow closer to God. With Jesus, we are justified by faith and are no longer under the law as our guardian, but we become sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

The question we need to ask ourselves is this: are we still stuck in keeping the law out of fear and just to get ourselves out of trouble; or have we grown in faith in Jesus, and keep the law out of love, and also observe the law of love in all we say and do?

Friday of Week 27 Year 2

When it comes to learning music, such as learning to play the piano or guitar or violin, there needs to be study of theory and practical. Without theory, we may not understand or appreciate what constitutes acceptable or good music, and the practical aspect may be compromised. Theory without practice would not bring us anywhere, since we may know the theory of music, but we would not know how to play the instrument. Thus in music, both theory and practical are needed, so that we would be able to harmonise and improve our musical talent.

In today's reading, St. Paul emphasised faith in Jesus Christ over the blind practice of the Law. The blind practice of the Law without having faith in God would result in the meticulous keeping of  rules and regulations, just as one would only be blindly learning music theory without having a clue about why we are doing so and how we could put such theory to good and practical use. It becomes like a "monkey see, monkey do" situation. This would lead to a contradiction on what we say and do, compared to what we are supposed to believe in.

Thus, let us not just blindly follow rules or blindly have faith, but have some proper formation on our faith, so that we would have some understanding of what we believe in and why we believe. In doing so our faith in Jesus would grow and mature as we walk in His ways.

Saturday of Week 27 Year 1

We sometimes hear the idiom: "Actions speak louder than words." A person can say a lot of things or make a lot of promises, but at the end of the day, words are cheap and meaningless, if such words end up merely as words and nothing is done. For example, we sometimes hear people complaining about how certain civil leaders are not doing their duty, and yet when asked to get involved and become a civil leader themselves, such persons make lots of excuses and dare not commit themselves. They prefer to remain as keyboard warriors or only talk or complain, but are unwilling to offer themselves as alternative candidates to be civil leaders who are willing to bring about change and justice.

In today's Gospel, we are reminded that "Actions speak louder than words," where Jesus tells us: "Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!" It is fine and good to hear the word of God, but just hearing the word of God won't mean anything, if we do not internalise it, ponder upon it, and share it with others. May we not keep the word of God to ourselves, but go forth and preach the Good News, just as what Jesus commanded us to do.

Friday of Week 27 Year 1

What happens to a person when he or she allows jealousy to take control of one's life? Some begin to behave in a silly or erratic manner, and they begin to say things which are silly, stupid or which make a fool of themselves. Some begin to waste time and effort trying to plot and bring the other person down, when they could have used such time and effort to do good. Some even begin to lose sleep and become increasingly frustrated, when others seem to be doing better or are more successful than they are, causing their health to be affected. But at the end of the day, why do we need to be jealous? What are we really trying to prove?

In today's Gospel: "When Jesus had cast out a devil, some of the people said, 'It is through Beelzebul, the prince of devils, that he casts out devils.' Others asked him, as a test, for a sign from heaven; but, knowing what they were thinking, he said to them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin, and a household divided against itself collapses. So too with Satan: if he is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? – Since you assert that it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils. Now if it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils, through whom do your own experts cast them out? Let them be your judges then.'"

When people allow jealously to get the better of them, they begin to talk nonsense, such as what has happened in the Gospel. Instead of trying to belittle Jesus, these people only end up belittling themselves. May we prevent jealousy from ruining our lives and relationships, and give thanks to God for the gifts we have as well as the gifts others have.

Thursday of Week 27 Year 1

In many movies and television shows, we often see the good guy winning and being triumphant. Quite often we would see the bad guy ending up dead, or imprisoned, or running away from the good guy. But what is the reality we see around us? We see the rich getting richer, and the poor getting poorer; those who do evil get the benefits, whereas those who do good end up as losers. Some of us begin to wonder: "Does God care? Will God do something to right the situation?" As time goes by, some of us begin to lose hope, or give up, thinking that the bad guy is untouchable or unbeatable. But the funny thing about life is, the good guy does win, not quite the way we expect, but sometimes in ways that go beyond our understanding and imagination.

In today's reading, the people tried to be good people and they tried to be faithful to the Lord. But they ended up getting disappointed and said: "It is useless to serve God; what is the good of keeping God's commandments? Because the arrogant seemed to be blessed and the evil doers prosper!" But the prophet Malachi reminded the people that God sees and He knows and He remembers. In the end, for those who fear God, the sun of righteousness will shine out with healing in its rays.

What about us? When we see that evil or wickedness or corruption seems to be winning, would we persevere and trust in God, knowing that He will save us and help us? Are we willing to be patient and let God take care of things? May we never give up or despair, but remain in hope, prayer and perseverance, knowing and trusting that God will help us in His time and for His glory.

Wednesday of Week 27 Year 1

Do we understand what the words mercy and compassion mean? We often say such words, especially when we are the ones asking for mercy and compassion, but when it involves others, especially those who have done great harm towards us, towards our loved ones, or even towards others, do we have the same attitude of mercy and compassion? Quite likely, some of us may wish just retribution towards those who have cause such harm. But if we consider a moment: do we fight evil with evil? How different are we if we demand retribution towards those who have done harm, and we respond with hate, anger and rage?

In today's reading, Jonah was sulking and fuming because God did not punish the people of Nineveh, because these people had renounce their evil behaviour. Jonah had expected divine retribution from God, because the Ninevites were Israel's sworn enemies. But what Jonah failed to realise and appreciate is that God is merciful and compassionate to all, not just to the Israelites, and He is slow to anger, rich in graciousness, relenting from evil.

If God is so compassionate and merciful towards all, even towards those whom some perceive to be evil-doers, than what about us? Do we still insist for an eye for an eye, or retribution come what may? Or have we learnt to be like God, who is patient, loving, compassionate, and merciful to all?

Tuesday of Week 27 Year 1

What do you do when you come to realise that you have sinned? Would you go for confession as quickly as possible to remove the stain of sin from your soul? Or would you think that there is plenty of time to go, only to put it off indefinitely? When you stain your shirt or dress, surely you would get it cleaned and removed as quickly as possible. This is because the shirt or dress may be valuable or significant to you, and you would not want to end up with a ruined shirt or dress. If so, then why are some procrastinating in removing the stain of sin from the soul, which has eternal consequences?

In today's reading, the king of Nineveh made quick and immediate "efforts to renounce their evil behaviour, and God relented: he did not inflict on them the disaster which he had threatened." This is because the king of Nineveh realised the consequences of not taking action, and he was not going to wait until he encountered God's wrath. May we too make every effort to keep our souls clean from the stain of sin, so that we too avoid the disaster which would affect our eternal future.

Monday of Week 27 Year 1

We sometimes come across certain persons who just want to win, no matter what. Such persons usually have a big ego and they think that they are right, or in some cases even if they have been proven wrong, they would twist and turn to try and make it sound that they are not that wrong, or that they are still right from a different point of view. Such persons are what we call "know it alls" or "think they know it all," while the fact of the matter is they may actually only sound right or sound as if they know it all, but if scrutinised further, they may not necessarily be right or know it all after all.

In today's Gospel, we come across a lawyer who tried to disconcert Jesus. Even after Jesus had given a correct and good answer, the lawyer just could not leave things be, and even tried to justify himself. In the end, the lawyer ended up eating humble pie and even though he knew that Jesus had put him in a spot, he was still unable to let go of his pride and ego. Jesus challenged him by asking: "Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands‘ hands?’" The lawyer knew that the example of the Good Samaritan showed what it means to be a good neighbour, but because of his pride, ego and prejudice, he could not bring himself to answer: "The Samaritan proved himself a neighbour..." Instead, the lawyer merely said, possibly in a haughty tone: "The one who took pity on him."

What about us? Are some of us like the lawyer, thinking that we are always right or often right? Have we tried to disconcert or discredit others, to show how great, clever, learned or smart we are? Let us not allow our pride, ego and prejudice to get the better of us, and learn to walk humbly in the presence of our loving and merciful God.

Thursday of Week 27 Year 2

When I was a child, I thought that if I wanted something all I had to do was to pray really hard. A new toy for Christmas, a wonderful cake for my birthday, a raise in my allowance? I thought that all I had to do was ask. Eventually, of course, I figured out that the world didn't work that way; and God did not answer prayers the way I thought He would. I did not fully understand why God did not answer my prayer, but I reasoned that maybe He was still thinking about it, like how my parents would think about it when I asked them for something.

Later when I grew older, I began to understand why sometimes my prayers were not answered. In today's Gospel, Jesus reminds us to be persistent in prayer. But being persistent in prayer does not mean that God will answer our prayer according to our whims and fancies. Persistent in prayer involves praying and asking God to answer our prayer, but at the same time having full trust and confidence that God knows what is best for us. God understands our hearts better than we do ourselves. If we open our hearts, we will receive what we really want and need, even if it's not exactly what we might think we want and need. May we remain persistent and hopeful, knowing that God will do what is best for us, for His glory.

Wednesday of Week 27 Year 2

What do we do when a person has said or done something wrong? Surely we would counsel the person, or even reprimand him or her for his or her words and actions. But sometimes, we come across people who practice double standards. When it comes to rich or influential persons, such people would be extra nice or kind to them; but when it comes to the poor or the meek or the marginalised, such people may treat them like dirt. What should we do, if we call ourselves Christians? Are we impartial, or do we practice double standards?

In today's reading, we see St. Paul being bold and willing to tell St. Peter off in his face. Even though St. Peter was an apostle and could be considered an influential person, St. Paul was impartial in his counsel. St. Peter was wrong by suddenly changing his attitude towards eating with pagans, just because a certain group of friends of James arrived. St. Peter may have been unwilling to create tension or issues with those group of friends of James, but his conduct was unbecoming of an apostle, who is supposed to be impartial, loving and fair to all, without fear or favour. Because of this, St. Paul gave St. Peter a piece of his mind: he told him off!

What about us? As Christians, are we being fair and loving to all, regardless of status, rank, or importance? Let us be impartial towards others, so that others would know and understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ.

Tuesday of Week 27 Year 2

We sometimes hear people saying: "You cannot teach an old dog new tricks" or "a leopard cannot change its spots." Such sayings seem to imply that people, especially when they have reach a certain age or if they have certain attitudes, cannot change no matter how hard others try to help them. Some of us begin to tolerate such persons, or if they are so difficult to get along with, some of us even begin to avoid them or shun them. The funny thing is, what seems impossible to us humans is not a problem with God. God can change people, and a person who was once so mean, wicked, difficult, obnoxious or even dangerous, could change to become a better person.

In today's reading, we come across one such person named Paul, who tells us: "You must have heard of my career as a practising Jew, how merciless I was in persecuting the Church of God, how much damage I did to it, how I stood out among other Jews of my generation, and how enthusiastic I was for the traditions of my ancestors. Then God, who had specially chosen me while I was still in my mother’s womb, called me through his grace and chose to reveal his Son in me, so that I might preach the Good News about him to the pagans." God changed Paul by transforming him from a persecutor of the faith, to a great defender of the faith, and even eventually died for the faith.

So What does this mean to us? It means that God will take care of things, and we just need to be patient and trust in Him. If God can change a person like Paul, and use him for His glory, just imagine what God could do for us, if we are humble and willing to let God be in control.

Monday of Week 27 Year 2

Over the years, we have come across people who claim to be followers of Christ and they seem to have the gift of the gab. These people begin to go around appearing to be preaching the Good News, but we could begin to notice something strange or odd about the message these people are preaching. Quite often, these people would either preach fear or doomsday and they would try to entice people to give up their wealth; or these people would preach about receiving greater rewards from God if we are more generous in our contributions or love offerings. Some people become so easily taken in by fear of the end times, or by such easy access to God's grace and providence, that they are duped into parting with their cash and even property. More often than not, such so called preachers are only looking to enriching themselves, and then make a run for it..

In today's reading, St. Paul warns us: "if anyone preaches a version of the Good News different from the one you have already heard, he is to be condemned. So now whom am I trying to please – man, or God? Would you say it is men’s approval I am looking for? If I still wanted that, I should not be what I am – a servant of Christ. The fact is, brothers, and I want you to realise this, the Good News I preached is not a human message that I was given by men, it is something I learnt only through a revelation of Jesus Christ." St. Paul is cautioning us to be careful and vigilant, because there may be preachers claiming to proclaim the Good News, but they are actually giving us false teaching. Let us not be so easily taken for a ride, and adhere to true and proper preaching, for the good of our eternal future.

Housekeeping - Week 27 Year 2

For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

2 Oct 2016 - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C
3 Oct 2016 - Monday of Week 27 Year 2
4 Oct 2016 - Tuesday of Week 27 Year 2
5 Oct 2016 - Wednesday of Week 27 Year 2
6 Oct 2016 - Thursday of Week 27 Year 2
7 Oct 2016 - Our Lady of the Rosary, Memorial

Tuesday of Week 27 Year 2

Every once in a while we come across a person who seems bent in creating problems for us as a church, or such a person is going all out to persecute us, like some sort of villain or antagonist who aims at getting rid of us or get the better of us at all costs. Some of us may try to avoid such a person, or even pray that God would do something to change the person's ways, so that we would be left in peace. The funny thing is, God does do such things from time to time, and a person who was once so mean and wicked, could change to become a defender of the faith.

In today's reading, we come across one such person named Paul, who tells us: "You must have heard of my career as a practising Jew, how merciless I was in persecuting the Church of God, how much damage I did to it, how I stood out among other Jews of my generation, and how enthusiastic I was for the traditions of my ancestors. Then God, who had specially chosen me while I was still in my mother’s womb, called me through his grace and chose to reveal his Son in me, so that I might preach the Good News about him to the pagans." From a persecutor of the faith, Paul became a great defender of the faith, and even eventually died for the faith.

What does this mean to us? It means that we need to be patient and trust that God will take care of things. We need to be courageous and persistent in sharing our faith with others, just as Paul was after his conversion. If God can change a person like Paul, and use him for His glory, just imagine what God could do for us, if we are humble and willing to let God be in control.

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

Looking at what is happening around us, in our families, in our communities, in our country, throughout the world; I sometimes wonder... Have people become crazy? Has the world gone insane? Are we heading towards disaster or impending doom? We see innocent children being killed, some even while in the womb, since there are some who think that abortion is a right, they are the victim and the foetus is the aggressor. We see marriages falling apart and in some places, even the definition of marriage is being challenged. We see children being mistreated or even tortured, sometimes due to issues between adults or between their own parents. We see domestic violence, maids being ill-treated, misuse of power or authority, rape, corruption, exploitation, people going on amok or on a rampage, just because they have been so easily influenced by certain irresponsible parties.

Amidst all the mayhem and mess we are facing, we could understand how the Prophet Habakkuk must have felt in the first reading when he said: "Outrage and violence, this is all I see, all is contention, and discord flourishes." Is it any wonder that more and more people around us are experiencing depression, some even to the point of ending it all, due to the madness happening around us. So how do we cope? How do we find meaning in life, when things all around us seems to be falling apart?

The readings today speak of faith. Faith enables us to see that God is in control, even though evil seems to be gaining the upper-hand;  faith gives direction when we are lost; faith helps us to persevere and press on even when faced with the many problems. In the world today, we need faith more than ever if we are to survive. In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us that if we have faith "the size of a mustard seed" we could uproot trees and move mountains. What does this mean? Jesus is not telling us that faith in God means God is going to perform something miraculous or spectacular for us, since that would reduce God to merely an entertainer, magician or some sort of wonder worker. Faith is when we believe God will take care of all things and not allow us to come to any harm. Faith is letting God to be God, letting God take control of our lives and do what is best for us, according to His terms and for His glory. It is in this context that, if we trust God, then even a tiny mustard seed could perform wonders way beyond our imagination and expectation, since it is God who allows it to take place. The problem is that some of us feel we must take a greater role, we want to be ones that can move mountains rather than letting God to do this. But if we say that we have 'faith,' then we must be prepared, willing and humble enough to let God have a free hand to do what is best for us.

Today, let us echo the words of the disciple and ask God to "increase our faith." Let us be docile and willing to let God take care of us and do what is best for us, putting on the eyes of faith and knowing and trusting that no matter what happens, no matter how bad the situation may be, we have a God who will not abandon us and will be there for us.

Friday of Week 27 Year 1

Have you ever stopped to think what jealousy could do to you, especially if you allow it to fester and control you? Some people may be quite surprised and embarrassed when they discover what happens when they allow themselves to be jealous. Some begin to behave in a silly or erratic manner, and they begin to say things which are silly, stupid or which make a fool of themselves. Some begin to waste time and effort trying to plot and bring the other person down, when they could have used such time and effort to do good. Some even begin to lose sleep and become increasingly frustrated, when others seem to be doing better or are more successful than they are, and their health is affected. But at the end of the day, why do we need to be jealous? What are we really trying to prove?

In today's Gospel, we read: "When Jesus had cast out a devil, some of the people said, 'It is through Beelzebul, the prince of devils, that he casts out devils.' Others asked him, as a test, for a sign from heaven; but, knowing what they were thinking, he said to them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin, and a household divided against itself collapses. So too with Satan: if he is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? – Since you assert that it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils. Now if it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils, through whom do your own experts cast them out? Let them be your judges then.'" We can obviously see that some of the people had allowed jealously to get the better of them, causing them to talk nonsense. Instead of trying to belittle Jesus, these people only end up belittling themselves. May we become aware of the dangers of allowing jealously to control us, lest we inadvertently end up by being worse than we were before.

Thursday of Week 27 Year 1

Life is such that we do not always get what we want immediately. Sometimes we need to ask a few times before we get what we want. Sometimes we do not get what we want at all. When we do not get what we want, what happens? Some of us may begin to feel as if God has abandoned us or God does not care, some may even start going for other means, hoping that these other means would give us what we want. But more often than not, we still end up not getting what we want. Then what? Do we just give up, get angry, pout and throw a tantrum? Or are we willing to be patient, persistent and consistent, with hope and trust that God would grant us our needs and wants?

In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us: "I tell you, if the man does not get up and give it him for friendship’s sake, persistence will be enough to make him get up and give his friend all he wants." Sometimes we ask for things or for help, but we are not persistent, patient and consistent in what we ask for. Sometimes, what we ask for may not be good for us. That is why we need to discern whether what we are asking for is really needed or necessary, and whether what we are asking for would ultimately glorify God. May we be humble and patient enough to let God guide us and grant us what we truly need, according to His time and for His glory.