LIVE IN HARMONY WITH ONE ANOTHER

(24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2020) 

Reflecting on the Parable of Unforgiving Servant (Matt 18: 21-35), Peter asked Jesus how many times he had to forgive a brother who sinned against him.  Jesus says, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” We must understand from this Parable that our Heavenly Father has forgiven us much more than we will ever have to forgive anyone who sins against us. He dismisses our offensive behaviour towards Him through His compassion and mercy. Jesus teaches us about forgiveness from the heart – sincerely forgive.

 

How often should we forgive? Forgiveness is something difficult for us to practice in our lives. As for me it is painful topic to preach about. It is always easier to say than doing it.  Often we say, “I'm not going to forgive him/her until he/she apologises to me!” Many of us are finding difficult to forgive others. Even if we do forgive, it was just lip services but because in actual fact, we have not forgiven the person whole-heartedly. Our response of forgiving someone that harm us, must come from the compassionate and merciful heart of the Heavenly Father, as the Psalmist says today, “The LORD is kind and merciful, slow to anger and rich in compassion.” (PS 102).

 

When we forgive, we need to learn how to forget and letting go, as well. Many of us still say that we struggle to forgive because we cannot forget the person and its issues. Forgiveness does require for us to go through physical, spiritual, psychological and emotional pain, again, before we can truly forgive and forget. Those are real difficult times as the wounds are deep and though it has happened in the past, its consequences and impacts of that wrong doing still reminds us of the event, today.  

 

What grudges, resentments and anger am I holding in my life? Are there anyone whom I have shut out of my life? Today’s the first reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus says that resentment and anger are hateful things and we, the sinners, hug them really tight, (Eccl 27: 33). The reading went on saying that we are only hurting ourselves with anger and resentment when we embrace them tightly. We also become more miserable and difficult to be around with. That resentment and anger that we don’t let go, will follow and disturb our livelihood till our end of days.

 

So, we need to forgive our opponents because forgiving others is a compulsory condition for receiving and earning God’s forgiveness. We can begin to pray about unforgiveness and the Book of Ecclesiasticus assures us, “when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.” When we start to pray for the willingness to forgive others, God forgives our sins and heals our hurts.

 

How do we go about this forgiveness progression?

I would like to end with a paragraph from one of my favourite texts of St Paul’s letter to Ephesians. “Do not use harmful words in talking but use only helpful words, the kind of words that build up and provide what is needed so that what you say will do good to those who hear you. Do not make God’s Holy Spirit sad… Get it of all bitterness, passion and anger. No more shouting and insults. No more hateful feelings of any sort. Instead, be kind-hearted and tender-hearted to one another, and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you in Christ,” (Eph 4: 29-32).

 

In our daily lives, we tend to have fewer words with our spouses, friends, colleagues, siblings and children. To top it off, they are often harmful as it do come in forms of upsetting words, the manner we deliver the message, that they eventually create this very toxic environment and negative feelings within the family, all in the name of we care about them and this is how we express that care. Done over and over again, and without realizing it, it will definitely cause hurt or pain towards the recipient. On the other hand, as a recipient of these negativity, if we do not forgive and help the person to adjust their ways and delivery of their message, that will damage our relationship (both short and long term) with the person and it also hurt our own relationship with Christ.

 

So this letter of St Paul to Ephesian reminds us that we should not keep anger in us, hold grudges, be arrogant or be violent and do not repay anyone evil for evil, but if it is possible, do live peacefully with all. If we cannot forgive others, you cannot expect forgiveness from God. We must be merciful and forgive our fellow brothers and sisters who have sinned against us and in pursuit for God forgiveness on our sins. Live in harmony with one another. Let’s be grateful and forgive others from the heart, sincerely and a peaceful life is promised to you.

ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

On the Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary (8 September), the Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur released a Chancery Notice with the latest updates pertaining to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for our Churches and various sectors of the Archdiocese, following the Prime Minister’s announcement with regards to the further extension of the Recovery Movement Control Order (“RMCO”) on 28 August 2020. A few adaptions have been added to the existing guidelines for the celebration of Sacraments, as well as other parish activities. I would like to highlight a few important SOPs and explain where we are headed, during this RMCO.

1.          AGE RESTRICTIONS AND PERSONS UNDER HIGH-RISK CATEGORIES

Under the Post COVID-19 (RMCO) guidelines issued by the National Security Council (“NSC”) for Non-Muslims places of worship dated 4 September 2020, those suffering from chronic diseases, senior citizens and children aged 12 years and below, are not encouraged to attend Public gatherings or Masses. However, we have eased on some of the restrictions to allow senior citizens, children aged 12 years and below  to attend mass in church since 5 September 2020. Last weekend (5-6 September) we received quite a number of duly completed declaration forms for the said categories of persons, endorsed by family members, caregivers or physicians. 

2.     NON-MALAYSIAN CITIZENS

Based on the latest SOP, the NSC now allows Non-Malaysian citizens to attend Mass and other religious activities. Even though the SOP has granted permission, we are only allowing foreigners and expatriates whom we are familiar with, to attend Mass in our Church. We have quite a large number of citizens from Myanmar in our Parish but we have not given them permission to attend Weekend Masses just yet. However, we will reopen our Church to them in October, enabling them to celebrate the Eucharist, Baptisms and Weddings.

3.          FUNERALS AND WEDDINGS

The Archdiocese has lifted the restriction on the number of attendees at funeral masses / services in the church, provided that they strictly adhere to the relevant safety measures. We request that family members register their names before attending the funeral Mass/service.

The NSC still wants us to strictly adhere to the SOP with regards to wedding ceremonies, whereby only a maximum of 20 people (including the priest and other ministers) are allowed to be present. Although many are still puzzled and unhappy with this restriction, we hope couples and their families really understand the situation.

4.          DISTRIBUTION OF HOLY COMMUNION OUTSIDE MASS.

We have encouraged our Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (EMOHC) to start distributing Holy Communion to the homebound. We advise each EMOHC to continue his/her duty, bringing Holy Communion only to one or two elderly and sick every fortnight. During these past weeks, we have appointed a few heads-of-families to bring Holy Communion to their elderly and sick family members at home, as an added precautionary measure.

5.          CATECHISM CLASS, RCIA, FORMATIONS AND MEETINGS.

We plan to restart our Catechism classes this October, and we will end the Catechetical Year 2020 in the first half of December. BEC meetings too have been suspended for more than 6 months, but we will resume our in-person monthly reflection meetings from October onwards. We will meet and plan certain activities in our Parish, gradually. The Parish Response Team (PRT) will provide updates on a few more details with regards to the SOP so that every parishioner will be able to participate in the celebration of the Sacraments and other Parish activities.

I am proud of our PRT members and Parishioners for their cooperation and commitment in adhering to the government’s and Church’s SOPs. During this COVID-19 crisis, we have recognised and observed a new norm in the way of life in the Church, thus far. The Holy Father, Pope Francis said, “we can heal the world, if we all work together for the common good.”

BLESSING OF HOLY WATER

RCIA CANDIDATES 2020
PHOTO: 30/8/20

RESPECTING MOTHER EARTH

Every month, the Holy Father Pope Francis, invites people worldwide to pray for a specific intention. Every year, 1st September is observed as the World Day of Peace for the “Care of Creation”. His Holiness’ prayer intention for the month of September 2020 is “Respect for the Planet’s Resources”. He urges us not only to pray for creation and its resources, but most of all, he wants us to learn to respect our planet’s resources. 

The Holy Father said that “we are squeezing out the planet’s goods as if the earth were an orange”. We are creating an “ecological debt” which means we are exploiting natural resources and destroying natural habitats. We have to learn to respect Mother Earth’s resources, “Today, not tomorrow; today, we have to take care of creation responsibly”. The Earth’s resources “will not be plundered, but shared in a just and respectful manner – no to plundering; yes to sharing”.

 

The Holy Father also invites us to pray for “politicians, scientists and economists to work together to protect the world’s seas and oceans”. There are many living creatures in the ocean and their lives are threatened for various reasons. “God looked at everything he had made, and he was very pleased,” (Gen 1: 31) and “For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with gratitude,” (1 Tim 4:4). Creation is a “project of love” given by God to all mankind. God our Creator revealed His loved among us, who came in the Person of Christ and lived among us (cf. 1 Jn 4: 9) to heal us, to restore us with the harmony that we have lost – harmony with living creatures and nature. He still lives among us – “He doesn’t abandon us, He doesn’t leave us alone, because He has definitely united us with our land, and His love always leads us to find new paths,” (Laudato Si, no. 245).

 

During the month of September, we need to be aware of our responsibility by strengthening our commitment towards respecting and protecting our planet. Every individual should carry out the mission of the Church by helping our communities to be more serious in our responsibility and transforming our activities to respect the environment. It is important and necessary to commit ourselves to love and respect Mother Earth. The Church has always been campaigning to bring awareness to people about the preservation of natural resources and biodiversity.

 

We must learn to live with what natural resources are available to us. We must stop polluting Mother Earth. We must reduce waste in order to protect the environment. We need to work towards building healthy generations, so that every human being may live in harmony with nature in the future.

 

Therefore, we pray for humanity and the Church for all the challenges, faced. We pray and work towards the Holy Father’s monthly intention for September, by respecting the Earth’s resources. St Francis of Assis is the Patron Saint of ecology, whose feast is celebrated on 4 October. Together with St Francis of Assisi, we pray that our planet’s resources will not be stolen by anyone, but shared in a just and respectful manner, and that we will find a way of enriching our inner lives as well.

 

BELOW ARE THE LYRICS FOR MOTHER EARTH BY KARLIENE REYNOLDS

(Released on 27/2/2019)

 

Listen to the animals

Listen to the trees

Listen to the spirits of the Earth

Begging us please

Stop listening to greed.

 

Listen to the rivers

Listen to the sea

Listen to the spirits of the deep

Begging us please

Stop listening to greed.

 

She sent the drought to warn us

She sent the storms to scold us

But we don't listen

We burn and we break

And we take and we take

And we take

Till it's too late.

 

Oh where did the beasts go?

Where did the trees go?

Where will man go

When he has lost

The heartbeat

Beneath his feet.

 

Oh this is our home

She gives us home

Mother Earth

Can you feel

Her heartbeat

Beneath your feet.

 

Heartbeat

Beneath your feet

Heartbeat

Beneath your feet.

 

 

https://lyricstranslate.com/en/karliene-mother-earth-lyrics.html

 

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

HARDEN NOT YOUR HEARTS

23^rd Sunday in Ordinary 2020 A (HOMILY)

Our Gospel text (Matt 18: 15-20) speaks, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.” This one sentence from the Gospel teaches us on how we can repair and nurture our relationships with one another and with God.

Some of us, when they come for their personal confession and I have noticed that they recite the lengthy Act of Contrition prayer. A number of them struggle to say it by heart. Of course I respect their initiative to recite the lengthy one. But I always advise them, to recite the shorter one which goes, “Lord, I am heartly sorry, for I have sinned against You, and by the help of Your grace, I shall not sin again.” This shorter version is so simple, straight and everyone can remember it by heart. It is easy to understand the meaning of the prayer, hopefully not to complicate our internalisation as we begin to reflect and admit our wrongs.

 

It is not so much of praying the lengthy Act of Contrition and accomplishing the penance so that we will be free from sins. But what is the most important, is to work on the reconciliation with our fellow brothers and sisters (i.e. our neighbours). We need to work on our reunion with our opponents, rather than alienate ourselves from them.  We may be broken and feel remorseful but only by God’s grace, that we may be able to reconcile with God, with His marvellous creation on earth, His peoples – the brothers and sister, the families and communities.

 

A friend of mine has shared with me about his reluctance to reconcile with his elder brother for almost 35 years. His elder brother went to further his studies abroad. After completing his studies and spending years in overseas he returned home. The young brother thought that he would be thankful to his parents by supporting them financially or at least being physically present in his parents’ home. But his brother chose to be on his own, and he got married and is living quite wealthily. He didn’t even care for his parents. Eventually, his parents passed on. These two brothers have not been going on in reaching out to each other, to the point of being strangers to each other.

 

He shared that this is painful because of early younger days events that strained their relationship. Some of us have experienced the similar pain that broken relationship. Most of us have experienced the pain that causes from broken marriages, or even between siblings and friends. Those hurt, and it we may be carrying that hurt for a very long time. But today, my friend prays and he hopes that one day, they will come to this common place, where they can be together again.

 

Everybody falls. “For though the upright falls seven times, he gets up again,” (Proverbs 24:16). Even when we hurt our relationship with God, through sins that we commit, God still look to heal and restore that relationship with us, that’s one of God’s purposes. As the Gospel says, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.” This is easier said than done, but courage, patience and hope will help us pull through. It also requires humility, a fraternal correction. We should not be a hypocrite or be prideful. The first thing we do when we are offended or hurt, is to communicate and take revenge with the ones who hurt us. Some walks away silently, carrying that burden too. Whether the other party asks for our forgiveness or remains unrepentant, forgiveness needed to be sought after, for ourselves and for the offender. God grants us then that peace. That repairs our own spiritual and emotional health, and it manifest well into our physical beings.  

In the second reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans (13:8-10), St Paul teaches us on how we should behave towards others. He says that “anyone is love for one another, for to love other person is to fulfil the law.” Each Christian has to love in the light of Christ’s love for us and in return our love for God and our neighbours will grow and shine on others. Jesus has showed us how to love one another unconditionally and therefore, let us go out and love one another. 

 “If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” (PS 95)

MOVING FORWARD IN EUCHARISTIC CELEBRATION

It has been two months since the re-opening of our church for Sunday worship. Initially, there was apprehension and uncertainty about the arrangements following the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in order for our Parishioners to celebrate the Eucharist during the weekend. However the Parish Response Team (“PRT”) has successfully coordinated the weekend Masses (Saturday Sunset and Sunday morning Mass) involving all our 34 Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) members and carried out their tasks well, taking us from Phase 1 into Phase 2. Starting September 2020, they will prepare for Phase 3 and Phase 4.

In Phase 3, we will resume daily morning Masses, wedding Masses, infant baptisms, distribution of Holy Communion to the homebound and Rite of Initiation for the Christian Adults (RCIA). Starting 1 September 2020, our weekday program (Monday to Friday) will begin with morning prayer (LAUDS) at 6.30am and followed by the Eucharistic celebration at 6.45am. We ask that Parishioners pre-register before walking into Church for the weekday morning prayer and Mass. Once you enter the Church premises, your temperature will be taken and recorded at the guardhouse. You may then enter and occupy the allocated seat inside the Church accordingly. Once Mass is over, you will be required leave the Church premises immediately. We want to minimise movement within the Church compound to ensure safety.

We are still limiting the number of attendees at wedding masses and funerals to between 20 and 30 persons, respectively. There are a few couples who have requested for the Sacrament of Baptism for their infants and this will be celebrated accordingly when we move into Phase 3. However, we will impose a limit on the number of persons attending the baptism ceremony to only 6-8 immediate family members. The Sacrament of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist) for the 2019/2020 RCIA Candidates will take place on Sunday, 30 August 2020 at 2pm. We will also lift the current restrictions and allow children below the age of 13, especially those who have already received the Sacrament of Holy Communion and also the elderly, those 70 years and above who are in good health, to attend Mass during Phase 3. Parents or any respective family members are required to sign a declaration form, which will be forwarded through all BEC leaders. 

The Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (EMHC) will resume bringing Holy Communion to the homebound in their respective BECs, but only fortnightly, for a start. I hope Parishioners will communicate with their respective BEC Communion Minister, when coordinating a homebound visit. We encourage the EMHC to take extra precautions when visiting the homebound, as they are among the most vulnerable in our community. I too have taken extra care when visiting the elderly and sick parishioners, bringing them Holy Communion and administering the Sacrament of Holy Anointing.

September will be a challenging month for the Parish Response Team (PRT) and volunteers, as they look into the logistics of coordinating Masses and celebrations here in Church. Although many parishes have been opened since August 2020, the SOP on non-Muslim places of worship still restrict attendance to only Malaysian citizens. The Church has a significant number of Parishioners who are non-Malaysians, and they have repeatedly requested to be allowed to participate in Mass. I hope the authorities will permit them to attend the Eucharistic celebrations soon.

As the Church in Malaysia starts to open its doors once again, it is time for us to reawaken our faith and start participating in-person at Mass. Although virtual services are still on-going to cater to those who are unable to attend Mass in-person, those of you who are eligible and able to be present at Church during Mass should make every effort to register and return once again to Church.

As we move into Phase 3 and Phase 4, we will carry out the new normal way of life in our religious practices at Church, without relaxing the stipulated SOPs. Let’s pray for our families and our community, so that our relationships will continue to flourish and be enhanced, for the better.

Pope Francis said, “May the Lord help you to discover new ways, new expressions of love, living as you do in this new situation. For in the end, this is a beautiful and creative opportunity to discover ourselves.”