1 John 5:5-13

Who can overcome the world?
Only the man who believes that Jesus is Son of God:
Jesus Christ who came by water and blood,
not with water only,
but with water and blood;
with the Spirit as another witness -
since the Spirit is the truth -
so that there were three witnesses,
the Spirit, the water and the blood,
and all three of them agree.
We accept the testimony of human witnesses,
but God’s testimony is much greater,
and this is God’s testimony,
given as evidence for his Son.
Everybody who believes in the Son of God
has this testimony inside him;
and anyone who will not believe God
is making God out to be a liar,
because he has not trusted
the testimony God has given about his Son.
This is the testimony:
God has given us eternal life
and this life is in his Son;
anyone who has the Son has life,
anyone who does not have the Son does not have life.

I have written all this to you
so that you who believe in the name of the Son of God
may be sure that you have eternal life.
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Luke 5:12-16

Jesus was in one of the towns when a man appeared, covered with leprosy. Seeing Jesus he fell on his face and implored him. ‘Sir,’ he said ‘If you want to, you can cure me.’ Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him and said, ‘Of course I want to! Be cured!’ And the leprosy left him at once. He ordered him to tell no one, ‘But go and show yourself to the priest and make the offering for your healing as Moses prescribed it, as evidence for them.’

His reputation continued to grow, and large crowds would gather to hear him and to have their sickness cured, but he would always go off to some place where he could be alone and pray.
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He would withdraw to deserted places to pray.

Due to my recent travels and laziness, I have not made proper time to pray. Somehow, whenever I set aside time to pray, something else would crop up – such as a family event to attend. Hence, instead of sitting quietly with the Lord, I find myself having to resort to praying on the run: praying while I am in the car or at times praying only before meals.

Although I have always known that spending quality time with God is important, I took for granted that God would understand. Today, however, as part of my New Year resolution, I finally set aside quiet time to pray, and this experience has reminded me of how important it is to spend quiet time with the Lord.

In the days when I failed to dedicate time to God, I often felt tired and experienced a sense of emptiness and restlessness. Thinking it was general weariness, I tried to “cure” it by making time for myself such as by spending time responding to emails and Facebook messages, reading my books, watching television and so on. Yet, that failed to remove the restlessness within me.

On the other hand, spending time with God today has taken away that restlessness and replaced it with a deep sense of peace, meaning and purpose. I may be engaging in the same activities; however, the renewed bond with God enables me to confront situations with a different perspective.

Perhaps this is why Jesus always set aside time to pray to His Father. Time spent with His Father enabled Him to keep focused on the reasons for His ministry and gave Him the graces to carry out God’s will. Even the Son of God needed to make time to pray, what about you and I?

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Lord, please forgive me for taking You for granted. Grant me the desire to spend some quiet time with You today.

Thanksgiving: Thank You Lord for always filling me with Your peace, wisdom, and love, whenever I sincerely allow You to.

Upcoming Readings:
Sat, 09 Jan – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Jan – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord; Catechetical Sunday

St. Raymond (1175-1275) was of Aragonian nobility. He was educated at the cathedral school in Barcelona, and became a philosophy teacher at the age of 20. He was a priest. He graduated from law school in Bologna, Italy, and joined the Dominicans in 1218. He was summoned to Rome in 1230 by Pope Gregory IX, and assigned to collect all official letters of the popes since 1150. Raymond gathered and published five volumes, and helped write Church law.

He was made Master General of the Dominicans in 1238. He reviewed the Order’s Rule, made sure everything was legally correct, then resigned his position in 1240 to dedicate himself to parish work. The pope wanted to make Raymond an archbishop, but he declined, instead returning to Spain and the parish work he loved. His compassion helped many people return to God through Reconciliation.

During his years in Rome, Raymond heard of the difficulties missionaries faced trying to reach non-Christians of Northern Africa and Spain. Raymond started a school to teach the language and culture of the people to be evangelized. With St. Thomas Aquinas, he wrote a booklet to explain the truths of faith in a way non-believers could understand. His great influence on Church law led to his patronage of lawyers.

- Patron Saint Index
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1 John 4:19-5:4

We are to love,
because God loved us first.
Anyone who says, ‘I love God’,
and hates his brother,
is a liar,
since a man who oes not love the brother that he can see
cannot love God, whom he has never seen.
So this is the commandment that he has given us,
that anyone who loves God must also love his brother.

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ
has been begotten by God:
and whoever loves the Father that begot him
loves the child whom he begets.
We can be sure that we love God’s children
if we love God himself and do what he has commanded us;
this is what loving God is -
keeping his commandments;
and his commandments are not difficult,
because anyone who has been begotten by God
has already overcome the world;
this is the victory over the world -
our faith.
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Luke 4:14-22

Jesus, with the power of the Spirit in him, returned to Galilee; and his reputation spread throughout the countryside. He taught in their synagogues and everyone praised him.

He came to Nazara, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day as he usually did. He stood up to read, and they handed him the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll he found the place where it is written:

The spirit of the Lord has been given to me,
for he has anointed me.
He has sent me to bring the good news to the poor,
to proclaim the liberty to captives
and to the blind new sight,
to set the downtrodden free,
to proclaim the Lord’s year of favour.

He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the assistant and sat down. And all eyes in the synagogues were fixed on him. Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips.
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Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.

When you read the Bible, do you read it as a storybook which documents past events? Or do you read it as a book that breathes life into your present situations?

Jesus came into the world to help the poor, to heal the sick, and set His people free. To non-Christians, Jesus was a good man, a prophet, a philosopher, and a teacher who once lived in this world as a role model for us. While these are all true, Christians believe in more: we believe that Jesus lived and died, but rose from the dead and therefore continues to live among us today. We believe that Jesus is more than a role model; He is also our helper who continues to free us from our addictions and fears.

Unlike role models whose values and way of life we try to emulate by our own efforts, we have a living God who pours out His love and graces in our lives so that He can assist us in attaining perfect freedom, joy, peace, and holiness. How blessed are we to have a God who helps us!

Today, in the ordinary moments of our lives, Jesus is fulfilling the scripture passage. Our faith is not just based on past stories documented in the Bible but is also based on Jesus’ continual presence and life among us.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Dear Lord, please remove anything in my life that blocks me from seeing You in the ordinary moments of my life.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord for helping me in my daily journeys.

Upcoming Readings:
Fri, 08 Jan – 1 John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16; Friday after Epiphany
Sat, 09 Jan – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Jan – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord; Catechetical Sunday

1 John 4:11-18

My dear people,
since God has loves us so much,
we too should love one another.
No one has ever seen God;
but as long as we love one another
God will live in us
and his love will be complete in us.
We can know that we are living in him
and he is living in us
because he lets us share his Spirit.
We ourselves saw and we testify
that the Father sent his Son
as saviour of the world.
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God lives in him, and he in God.
We ourselves have known and put our faith in
God’s love towards ourselves.
God is love
and anyone who lives in love lives in God,
and God lives in him.
Love will come to its perfection in us
when we can face the day of Judgement without fear;
because even in this world
we have become as he is.
In love there can be no fear,
but fear is driven out by perfect love:
because to fear is to expect punishment,
and anyone who is afraid is still imperfect in love.
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Mark 6:45-52

After the five thousand had eaten and were filled, Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to Bethsaida, while he himself sent the crowd away. After saying good-bye to them he went off into the hills to pray. When evening came, the boat was far out on the lake, and he was alone on the land. He could see they were worn out with rowing, for the wind was against them; and about the fourth watch of the night he came towards them walking on the lake. He was going to pass them by, but when they saw him walking on the lake they thought it was a ghost and cried out, for they had all seen and were terrified. But he at once spoke to them, and said, ‘Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid.’ Then he got into the boat with them, and the wind dropped. They were utterly and completely dumbfounded, because they had not seen what the miracle of the loaves meant; their minds were closed.
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Their hearts were hardened.

I currently identify with the verse above. God feels far away from me. I read the Bible but am not able to give it the reverence it deserves. In fact, I often find the Bible boring and avoid reading it. So the questions I ask myself right now are: “Why has my heart hardened? Why do I reject God’s voice? Why am I blocking Him out from my heart?”

Pride. That is my answer. Specifically, my pride makes me angry with myself for always returning to old habits, such as inconsistency in prayer, habitually sinning, and not doing well enough in my faith life as I would like to. I feel ashamed that I write these reflections but continue to struggle with recurrent problems and require constant forgiveness from God.

In today’s gospel reading, we read that the disciples’ hearts were also hardened. Like me, pride could have hardened their hearts. Or maybe their hearts were hardened because of jealousy, greed, envy, or selfishness. Thankfully, God does not reject us the way we reject Him (and ourselves). He does not expect perfect holiness from us and understands that we will continue to fall (although hopefully lesser) each day. In spite of His disciples’ failings, Jesus continued to teach and love each one of them.

Is there anything that hardens your heart from God’s love and graces today? If so, do not be afraid to admit what it is. Name it so that the devil cannot continue to use it against you. Offer it up to God and let His light cast out the darkness it has caused in your life.

Just as Jesus knew His disciples’ weaknesses but continued to love them, show patience towards them, help, and guide them, so He will continue to love us, be patient with us, and assist us in overcoming our weaknesses. Nothing can ever separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing will ever take us away from God. The only thing that can cut our God’s love from our lives is if we refuse it.

Will you choose humility and allow God to patiently guide you? Or will you choose pride and thereby block out the patience and mercy that God wishes to bestow upon you?

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, who am I to think that I shouldn’t fall as Your disciples did? Yet, I know that You see my pride and continue to love me in spite of this. Thank You Lord, for loving me so much.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to our God for His patience and mercy towards us.

Upcoming Readings:
Thu, 07 Jan – 1 John 4:19-5:4; Luke 4:14-22; Thursday after Epiphany; Memorial for St Raymond of Penyafort, Priest
Fri, 08 Jan – 1 John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16; Friday after Epiphany
Sat, 09 Jan – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Jan – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord; Catechetical Sunday

1 John 4:7-10

My dear people,
let us love one another
since love comes from God
and everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.
Anyone who fails to love can never have known God,
because God is love.
God’s love for us is revealed
when God sent into the world his only Son
so that we could have life through him;
this is the love I mean:
not our love for God,
but God’s love for us when he sent his Son
to be the sacrifice that takes our sins away.
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Mark 6:34-44

As Jesus stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he set himself to teach them at some length. By now it was getting very late, and his disciples came up to him and said, ‘This is a lonely place and it is getting very late, so send them away, and they can go to the farms and villages round about, to buy themselves something to eat.’ He replied, ‘Give them something to eat yourselves.’ They answered, ‘Are we to go and spend two hundred denarii on bread for them to eat?’ ‘How many loaves have you?’ he asked. ‘Go and see.’ And when they had found out they said, ‘Five, and two fish.’ Then he ordered them to get all the people together in groups on the green grass, and they sat down on the ground in squares of hundreds and fifties. Then he took the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven and said the blessing; then he broke the loaves and handed them to his disciples to distribute among the people. He also shared out the two fish among the all. They all ate as much as they wanted. They collected twelve basketfuls of scraps of bread and pieces of fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.
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Give them some food yourselves

As I read today’s gospel reading, I find that the attitudes I hold are very similar to those of the disciples. They asked Jesus to dismiss the people so that they could find some food for themselves. Like the disciples who cared enough for the crowd to be fed, I too care for people around me to be taken care of. However, when Jesus asked the disciples to give the crowd food themselves, they hesitated and felt that Jesus was asking them to sacrifice their own meals for the meals of others. Similarly, whenever I think about having to give my time to others, I hesitate because I feel this means that I must sacrifice the time I need for my personal commitments.

Similar to the disciples, I move from a mindset of limitations. For instance, if I only have one litre of water in a desert, I will hesitate to give this to another thirsty person because I perceive it as meaning that I would have lesser water for my journey. This is a basic human instinct to want to preserve our own lives.

However, Jesus warns that “whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 6:25). If I continue with this mindset, I will grow more selfish. Life will also lose its meaning because we are called to live for others and not for ourselves.

Yet, Jesus does not judge me or His disciples for our limited mindsets and attitudes. Instead, He acknowledges our fear and presents us with a paradoxical alternative: He tells us that it is precisely when we live for others that we will find life. In fact, Jesus doesn’t just tell His disciples this, but shows them. In today’s gospel passage, Jesus showed His disciples that when they obeyed His commandments to feed the poor, He would supply them with more than they needed, as shown by the 12 baskets of leftovers.

Unlike us, God moves from a mindset of abundance. Using the same example of having one litre of water, if I share this litre of water with another, God will bless me with even more than one litre of water for myself! This is impossible for us to understand if we use worldly knowledge, but by God’s wisdom and grace, it is something we will grow to understand.

Yet, in order for us to acquire this understanding, we have to obey our God. The disciples did not know what Jesus had in mind but obeyed His commandments before understanding. Similarly, sometimes we need to first obey, before understanding. Such leaps of faith and unyielding trust in the Lord will please our God and help us to grow in faith and wisdom.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Mother Mary, please pray for me to always obey God even when I do not understand, as you did.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to God for granting us a perfect role model, Mother Mary, whose response to God is always “yes”.

Upcoming Readings:
Wed, 06 Jan – 1 John 4:11-18; Matthew 6:45-52; Wednesday after Epiphany
Thu, 07 Jan – 1 John 4:19-5:4; Luke 4:14-22; Thursday after Epiphany; Memorial for St Raymond of Penyafort, Priest
Fri, 08 Jan – 1 John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16; Friday after Epiphany
Sat, 09 Jan – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Jan – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

1 John 3:22-4:6

Whatever we ask God,
we shall receive,
because we keep his commandments
and live the kind of life that he wants.
His commandments are these:
that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ
and that we love one another
as he told us to.
Whoever keeps his commandments
lives in God and God lives in him.
We know that he lives in us
by the Spirit that he has given us.

It is not every spirit, my dear people, that you can trust;
test them, to see if they come from God,
there are many false prophets, now, in the world.
You can tell the spirits that come from God by this:
every spirit which acknowledges that Jesus the Christ has come in the flesh
is from God;
but any spirit which will not say this of Jesus
is not from God,
but is the spirit of Antichrist,
whose coming you were warned about.
Well, now he is here, in the world.
Children,
you have already overcome these false prophets,
because you are from God and you have in you
one who is greater than anyone is this world;
as for them, they are of the world,
and so they speak the language of the world
and the world listens to them.
But we are children of God,
and those who know God listen to us;
those who are not of God refuse to listen to us.
This is how we can tell
the spirit of truth from the spirit of falsehood.
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Matthew 4:12-17.23-25

Hearing that John had been arrested, Jesus went back to Galilee, and leaving Nazareth he went and settled in Capernaum, a lakeside town on the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali. In this way the prophecy of Isaiah was to be fulfilled:

Land of Zebulun! Land of Naphtali!
Way of the sea on the far side of Jordan,
Galilee of the nations!
The people that lived in darkness
has seen a great light;
on those who dwell in the land and shadow of death
a light has dawned.

From that moment Jesus began his preaching with the message, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.’

He went round the whole of Galilee teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and sickness among the people. HIs fame spread throughout Syria, and those who were suffering from diseases and painful complaints of one kind or another, the possessed, epileptics, the paralysed, were all brought to him, and he cure them. Large crowds followed him, coming from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judaea and Transjordania.
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You have in you one who is greater than anyone in this world

We live by many truths in our lives. Take gravity for instance. We know that even if we do not believe in gravity, it continues to exist. Therefore, if we jump off a building we will head downwards (not upwards). Those who fail to acknowledge this truth will go through life with much difficulty. For example, they may constantly break things as they keep throwing things into the air, expecting that the object would rise rather than fall. This should sound absurd to you because you have already come to live by the truth that gravity exists, and you have allowed this truth to guide your decisions.

Today’s first reading reminds us that God is in us. This is a truth, much like gravity is a truth. And truths are objective and continue to exert their effects, irrespective of whether or not we subjectively believe in them. Just as gravity continues to exist even if an infant has no awareness of its effects, God lives in us regardless of whether or not we realize this. Therefore, parallel consequences apply. If we deny the existence of gravity, we will go through life breaking things (e.g. our material goods), break our bones (from jumping off buildings), and even die (if the building is high enough). Similarly, if we deny the truth that God is in us, we could go through life losing our happiness, injuring our souls, and even die spiritually (leading empty lives).

Are there moments in your life when you have felt empty? Or perhaps you currently live an empty life? During these times, do you claim the truth that God is living in you? Or do you deny this truth and think of God as a distant concept?

Let us pray for God’s grace to always live in the truth. Let us remember that the truth will set us free (John 8:32) and ask for God’s grace to always choose real freedom over the bondages in our lives.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, by your grace and love, let me live in the truth that you dwell in me such that I would find living any way else to be absurd.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord Jesus for sending people into my life to guide me towards facing the truths in my lives so that I would find true happiness and peace.

Upcoming Readings:
Tue, 05 Dec – 1 John 4:7-10; Matthew 6:34-44; Tuesday after Epiphany
Wed, 06 Dec – 1 John 4:11-18; Matthew 6:45-52; Wednesday after Epiphany
Thu, 07 Dec – 1 John 4:19-5:4; Luke 4:14-22; Thursday after Epiphany; Memorial for St Raymond of Penyafort, Priest
Fri, 08 Dec – 1 John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16; Friday after Epiphany
Sat, 09 Dec – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Dec – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord; Catechetical Sunday

The Revelation Of Christ To The World

We join all the people of the world in worshipping the infant King of the Jews

- The Sunday Missal
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Isaiah 60:1-6

Arise, shine out Jerusalem, for your light has come,
the glory of the Lord is rising on you,
though night still covers the earth
and darkness the peoples.
Above you the Lord now rises
and above you his glory appears.
The nations come to your light
and kings to your dawning brightness.

Lift up your eyes and look round:
all are assembling and coming towards you,
your sons from far away
and daughters being tenderly carried.

At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart throbbing and full;
since the riches of the sea will flow to you;
the wealth of the nations come to you;

camels in throngs will co er you,
and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
everyone in Sheba will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing the praise of the Lord
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Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6

You have probably heard how I have been entrusted by God with the grace he meant for you, and that it was by a revelation that I was given the knowledge of the mystery. This mystery that has now been revealed through the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets was unknown to any men in past generations; it means that pagans now share the same inheritance, that they are parts of the same body, and that the same promise has been made to them, in Christ Jesus, through the gospel.
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Matthew 2:1-12

After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east. ‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Christ was to be born.’ At Bethlehem in Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the prophet wrote:

And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah
you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah,
for out of you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.’

Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said ‘and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go and do him homage.’ Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And there in front of them was the star they had seen rising; it went forward and halted over the place where the child was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, and returned to their own country by a different way.
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The sight of the star filled them with delight

I had a short stopover in London a couple of years back after a conference in Oxford. I had decided that I would like to do a lot of walking between destinations as it would allow me to really take in the sights. I prepared by studying maps of the city but the actual walking itself seemed longer. There were quite a few times when I had doubts about the route I was on. It was a big relief to come across landmarks which I had noted on the map. These told me that my path was true and I was on my way to my destination.

The word epiphany originated from the Greek word epiphaneia which means “appearance, manifestation”. The Epiphany of our Lord is thus a very significant name for a very significant event. Christ in human form is revealed to humanity represented by the magi. The journey the wise men made was not an easy one; they did not know the exact route and were almost used by Herod to locate Christ. In spite of everything, they recognized that the star they saw marked the location of Christ and were overjoyed at the sight of it. How could they not be? They had come to witness what Isaiah prophesized, the light of God shining in Israel, and to pay tribute.

We are at the start of a new year and we each have our own roads for it ahead of us. Regardless of how much we know about them and whether we are confident or apprehensive about them, many details are still unknown. Mysteries like these though are all known to Christ and we can take heart in that. So my brothers and sisters, may the Lord provide us with shining beacons as we go on our ways, that we will never lose sight of Him, each other and ourselves.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Aloysius Ting)
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Prayer: We pray for light of Christ to shine in the darkness every day of our lives.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for the gift of sight.

Upcoming Readings:
Mon, 04 Jan – 1 John 3:22-4:6; Matthew 3:12-17.23-25; Monday after Epiphany
Tue, 05 Jan – 1 John 4:7-10; Matthew 6:34-44; Tuesday after Epiphany
Wed, 06 Jan – 1 John 4:11-18; Matthew 6:45-52; Wednesday after Epiphany
Thu, 07 Jan – 1 John 4:19-5:4; Luke 4:14-22; Thursday after Epiphany; Memorial for St Raymond of Penyafort, Priest
Fri, 08 Jan – 1 John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16; Friday after Epiphany
Sat, 09 Jan – 1 John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30; Saturday after Epiphany
Sun, 10 Jan – Isaiah 42:1-4.6-7; Acts of the Apostles 10:34-38; Luke 3:15-16.21-22; Feast of the Baptism of the Lord; Catechetical Sunday

Basil the Great (329-379) was a noble by birth. His parents and four of his nine siblings were canonized, including St. Gregory of Nyssa. He was the grandson of St. Marcina the Elder. As a youth, he was noted for organizing famine relief, and for working in the kitchens himself, quite unusual for a young noble.

He studied in Constantinople and Athens with his friend St. Gregory Nazianzen. He ran a school of oratory and law in Caesarea. He was so successful and sought after as a speaker that he was tempted by pride. Fearful that it would overtake his piety, he sold all that he had, gave away the money, and became a priest and monk.

He founded monasteries and dew up rules for monks living in the desert. He is considered as key to the founding of eastern monasticism as Benedict was to the west. He was the bishop and archbishop of Caesarea. He conducted Mass and preached to the crowds twice daily. He fought Arianism, is a Greek Doctor of the Church, and a Father of the Church.

Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390) was the son of St. Gregory of Nazianzen the Elder and St. Nonna, brother of St. Caesar Nazianzen, and St. Gorgonius. He spent an itinerant youth in search of learning. He was a friend and fellow student with St. Basil the Great, and a monk at Basil’s desert monastery.

He was a reluctant priest, feeling himself unworthy, and fearing that the responsibility would test his faith. He assisted his bishop father to prevent an Arian schism in the diocese. He opposed Arianiam and brought its heretical followers back to the fold. He became Bishop of Caesarea in 370 which put him in conflict with the Arian emperor Valens. the disputes led his friend Basil the Great, then archbishop, to reassign him to a small, out of the way posting at the edge of the archbishopric.

Following the death of Valens, he was appointed Bishop of Constantinople from 381-390. He hated the city, despised the violence and slander involved in these disputes, and feared being drawn into politics and corruption. But he worked to bring the Arians back to the faith. For his trouble, he was slandered, insulted, beaten up, and a rival “bishop” tried to take over his diocese.

He was a noted preacher on the Trinity. When it seemed that the faith had been restored in the city, Gregory retired to live the rest of his days as a hermit. He wrote theological discourses and poetry, some of it religious, some of it autobiographical. He was a Father of the Church, and a Doctor of the Church.

- Patron Saint Index
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1 John 2:22-28

The man who denies that Jesus is the Christ -
he is the liar,
he is Antichrist;
and he is denying the Father as well as the Son,
because no one who has the Father can deny the Son,
and to acknowledge the Son is to have the Father as well.
Keep alive in yourselves what you were taught in the beginning:
as long as what you were taught in the beginning is alive in you,
you will live in the Son
and in the Father;
and what is promised to you by his own promise
is eternal life.
This is all that I am writing to you about the people
who are trying to lead you astray.
But you have not lost the anointing that he gave you,
and you do not need anyone to teacher you;
the anointing he gave teaches you everything;
you are anointed with truth, not with a lie,
and as it has taught you, so you must stay in him.
Live in Christ, then, my children,
so that if he appears, we may have full confidence,
and not turn from him in shame
at his coming.
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John 1:19-28

This is how John appeared as a witness. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ he not only declared, but he declared quite openly, ‘I am not the Christ.’ ‘Well then,’ they asked ‘are you Elijah?’ ‘I am not’ he said. ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No,’ So they said to him, ‘Who are you? We must take an answer to those who sent us. What have you to say about yourself?’ So John said, ‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied:

a voice that cries in the wilderness:
Make a straight way for the Lord.’

Now these men had been sent by the Pharisees, and they put this further question to him, ‘Why are you baptising if you are not the Christ, and not Elijah, and not the prophet?’ John replied, ‘I baptise with water; but there stands among you – unknown to you – the one who is coming after me; and I am not fit to undo his sandal-strap.’ This happened at Bethany, on the far side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.
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Keep alive in yourselves what you were taught in the beginning

It is not easy to be a Catholic because the Catholic Church is so diverse. Anyone who is sincerely seeking how to be a good Catholic is bombarded with messages from Catholic sources all over. Some will say that good Catholics pray the Rosary every day. Others will say that they go for charismatic prayer sessions, while still other Catholics frown on such sessions and say that you must worship God as the true Church worships Him. There is contemplation, meditation, scripture study, Eucharistic adoration, devotions to the Blessed Mother and the various saints, wear this miraculous medal and that scapular, and so on. How is a Catholic supposed to do all these? Actually, we’re not required to.

Even though these practices are all accepted by the Catholic Church, the Church does not require us to practise them to be a Catholic. These are all various ways that people have chosen or preferred to draw closer to God. Unfortunately, for those who have been trying one thing after another, it would seem that such Catholics are leading us ‘astray’.

In today’s gospel reading, John the Baptist was quite clear on his mission – to prepare the way for the Lord. Once he knew his mission in life, he could very easily say ‘no’ to the priests and Levites sent to question him. In other words, once he knew what he was, he also knew what he wasn’t. In today’s context, we call this our vocation.

For example, if we know that it is our vocation to be married, we can quite easily say ‘no’ to priesthood, religious life, or consecrated singlehood. Or if we know that our particular vocation is to the singing ministry, we can quite easily say ‘no’ to people who ask us to join the bulletin ministry, or prayers for the dead, or ministry to the sick, and so on.

Conversely, if we do not know what our vocation is, we will be pulled this way and that, joining this ministry and that ministry and end up being drained and exhausted. But even those who do know their vocation can forget about it after a while, and end up being pulled this way and that.

Let us therefore remember our vocation in life and, if we have not yet discerned it, start finding out what God has called us to and prepared us for in His master plan.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: We pray for all who are at a crossroads in their life, that they may listen for the voice of God speaking to them and through the people around them, revealing to them His plan and how they can be a part of it.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for spiritual directors who help us to discern our vocation in life.

Upcoming Readings:
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God is celebrated on Jan 1, the Octave Day of Christmas (i.e. 8th day after Christmas). It is a celebration of Mary’s motherhood of Jesus. The title “Mother of God” is a western derivation from the Greek term ‘theotokos’, the God-bearer.

The term ‘theotokos’ was adopted at the Council of Ephesus as a way to assert the divinity of Christ, from which it follows that what is declared of Christ is declared of God. So, if Mary is the mother of Jesus, she is the Mother of God. Therefore, the title ‘Mother of God’ and the ‘Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God’, which celebrates her under this title, are at once Mariological and Christological.

- Wikipedia
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Numbers 6:22-27

The Lord spoke to Moses and said, ‘Say this to Aaron and his sons: “This is how you are to bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”

This is how they are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.’
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Galatians 4:4-7

When the appointed time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons. The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a son, you are not a slave any more; and if God has made you son, then he has made you heir.
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Luke 2:16-21

The shepherds hurried away to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in er heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told.

When the eighth day came and the child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name Jesus, the name the angel had given him before his conception.
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They are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them

The Catholic Church marks the New Year by celebrating Mary as our Mother. It is indeed fitting that we consider how we start the year under the protection of Our Lady. The New Year is a blessing upon all of us as we are given an opportunity by God to start upon activities that will seek to glorify His name amidst all the past failures and lost opportunities we may have encountered in the previous year.

The readings of today are one of great rejoicing and blessing because that is what the New Year should be. The Church has chosen this day for us to remember of the importance of Mary in salvation history. Mary’s agreement to do the will of God enabled Man to be saved from sin. Mothers often suffer patiently and put in a tremendous amount of sacrifices for their children without the latter’s knowledge. Perhaps it will be good if there is an opportunity for us to recall what God has asked us to do.

We can follow the example of Our Lady who surrendered her will and let the will of God flow through her entire being. As we go about today recovering from the enjoyment of New Year’s Eve, let us remember to dedicate the first day of 2010 to Our Lady and ask her to take us under her mantle and protect us from all harm and evil.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
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Prayer: Mother Mary, let us always follow your example of obedience as we begin the New Year.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for the gift of life.

Upcoming Readings:
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

Sylvester (d. 335) was pope in the reign of Emperor Constantine I, who built the Lateran and other churches. He sent legates to the First Council of Nicaea, and was involved in the controversy over Arianism. The spurious Donation of Constantine was supposedly given to St. Sylvester.

- Patron Saint Index
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1 John 2:18-21

Children, these are the last days;
you were told that an Antichrist must come,
and now several antichrists have already appeared;
we know from this that these are the last days.
Those rivals of Christ came out of your own number, but they had never really belong;
if they had belonged, they would have stayed with us;
but they left us, to prove that not one of them
ever belonged to us.
But you have been anointed by the Holy One,
and have all received the knowledge.
It is not because you do not know the truth that I am writing to you
but rather because you know it already
and know that no lie can come from the truth.
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John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word;
the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things came to be,
not one thing had its being but through him.
All that came to be had life in him
and that life was the light of men,
a light that shines in the dark,
a light that darkness could not overpower.
A man came, sent by God.
His name was John.
He came as a witness,
as a witness to speak of the light;
so that everyone might believe through him.
He was not the light,
only a witness to speak for the light.

The Word was the true light
that enlightens all men;
and he was coming into the world.
He was in the world that had its being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to his own domain
and his own people did not accept him.
But to all who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to all who believe in the name of him
who was born not out of human stock
or urge of the flesh
or will of man
but of God himself.
The Word was made flesh,
he lived among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.

John appears as his witness. He proclaims:
‘This is the one of whom I said:
He who comes after me
ranks before me
because he existed before me.’

Indeed, from his fullness we have, all of us, received -
yes, grace in return for grace,
since, though the Law was given through Moses,
grace and truth have come through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God;
it is the only Son, who is nearest to the Father’s heart,
who has made him known.
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He came to his own domain and his own people did not accept him

Today marks the close of the octave of Christmas and we are reminded of the reason why Jesus came into the world in today’s Gospel which happens to be the Gospel for Christmas Mass at Dawn. Perhaps it will be good for us to consider what we have done to commemorate Christmas over the past few days.

Typically Christmas celebrations involve a tremendous amount of feasting and drinking. The many pubs, restaurants and shopping centres often see a sharp increase in earnings during this period. This brings up to us a sharp contradiction because Christmas may have become overly commercialized for some people and they put the peripheral (shopping and dining) over the focus which is supposed to be the celebration of Christ into the world. People would rather focus on their activity rather than on what the original intent of the celebration was. I am guilty of such behaviour and every time we do so we kind of introduce “non-Christ” into the Christmas celebration.

I do not to think that our celebrations have become “anti-Christ” but it is worthy to reflect on the first reading because it mentions that such behaviour usually stems from within the world. We need to possess the knowledge to be able to distinguish between the superficial and the genuine. This skill will enable us to cut to the main purpose of Christmas: Man finally has a Saviour who is able to restore the friendship lost through Original Sin. As we come to an end of the Christmas season, let us remember that it is Jesus that should guide all our actions.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
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Prayer: Lord, we pray that we never lose sight of Your tender love.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for those who put Jesus as the centre of their life.

Upcoming Readings:
Fri, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

1 John 2:12-17

I am writing to you, my own children,
whose sins have already been forgiven through his name;
I am writing to you, fathers,
who have come to know the one
who has existed since the beginning;
I am writing to you, young men,
who have already overcome the Evil One;
I have written to you, children,
because you already know the Father;
I have written to you, fathers,
because you already know the Father;
I have written to you, fathers,
because you have come to know the one
who has existed since the beginning;
I have written to you, young men,
because you are strong and God’s word has made its home in you,
and you have overcome the Evil One.
You must not love this passing world
or anything that is in the world.
The love of the Father cannot be
in any man who loves the world,
because nothing the world has to offer
- the sensual body,
the lustful eye,
pride in possessions -
could ever come from the Father
but only from the world;
and the world, with all it craves for,
is coming to the end;
but anyone who does the will of God
remains for ever.
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Luke 2:36-40

There was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well on in years. Her days of girlhood over, she had been married for seven years before becoming a widow. She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer. She came by just at that moment and began to praise God; and she spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem. When they had done everything the Law of the Lord required, they webt back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. Meanwhile the child grew to maturity, and he was filled with wisdom; and God’s favour was with him.
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The love of the Father cannot be in any man who loves the world

As an undergraduate I used to love to irritate all my friends whom have graduated and were working in the business and financial district by going to the coffee houses nearby their offices. I would slowly sip my drink as I saw these people rushing out of the subway and then send them a SMS to ask them how they were. The choice of this particular working lifestyle brings about its toll and it was my intent to remind them that their superiors may not necessarily appreciate the tremendous effort they have put in.

This has especially deep relevance in our spiritual life. There can be two ways in which we can examine its growth through the use of external criteria and internal criteria. The external criterion is what I related earlier; what is God asking us to do in our lives? What are our priorities as Christians? The first reading reminds us that eventually all things temporal are just that: temporary and fleeting. It is the will of God that must prevail before our lives. When we bear this in mind and obey His will we cannot go far wrong from living the life of charity and love amidst this secular world.

The internal criterion is simply for us to ask ourselves what actions have we taken to deepen our relationship with God? The Gospel tells us of how the prophetess Anna served the Lord with her whole life in the temple and prayed and fasted unceasingly. The acts of mortification and prayer seek to prepare us for an encounter with God.

Most people will undergo a certain level of preparation before they embark on a major event in their life such as the national examinations, a job interview or even meeting the prospective parents-in-law. The examples that I have listed are all encounters in their own right. Similarly, we cannot expect God to appear right before us or hear His voice if we are not correctly disposed to receive Him.

Ultimately what we are expected to do in the Christmas season is to share the joy of Jesus whom has entered into our world with the rest of our non-Christian friends. Let us take some time and get away from the noise and feasting of the Christmas season to consider how we can strengthen our spiritual lives for a closer encounter with God.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
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Prayer: Lord, we pray for the strength to obey Your will regardless of the issues that we may face in our journey towards our eternal reward.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for the people whom have dedicated their entire lives to God.

Upcoming Readings:
Thu, 31 Dec – 1 John 2:18-21; Jn 1:1-18; Seventh Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Silvester, Pope
Fri, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

Thomas (1118-1170) was of Norman ancestry. He was educated at Merton Priory, Paris, Bologna, and Auxerre. He was a civil and canon lawyer, a soldier and officer. He was archdeacon of Canterbury, and was a Friend of King Henry II, as well as Chancellor of England. He was ordained in 1162 and was appointed archbishop of Canterbury the next day. He opposed the King’s interference in ecclesiastical matters. He was exiled several times, and was eventually murdered (and martyred) in 1170 in the Cathedral at Canterbury, England.

- Patron Saint Index
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1 John 2:3-11

We can be sure that we know Jesus
only by keeping his commandments.
Anyone who says, ‘I know him’,
and does not keep his commandments,
is a liar,
refusing to admit the truth.
But when anyone does obey what he has said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
We can be sure
that we are in God
only when the one who claims to be living in him
is living the same kind of life as Christ lived.
My dear people,
this is not a new commandment that I am writing to tell you,
but an old commandment
that you were given from the beginning,
the original commandment which was the message brought to you.
Yet in another way, what I am writing to you,
and what is being carried out in your lives as it was in his,
is a new commandment;
because the night is over
and the real light is already shining.
Anyone who claims to be in the light
but hates his brother
is still in the dark.
But anyone who loves his brother is living in the light
and need not be afraid of stumbling;
unlike the man who hates his brother and is in the darkness,
not knowing where he is going,
because it is too dark to see.
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Luke 2:22-35

When the day came for them to be purified as laid down by the Law of Moses, the parents of Jesus took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord – observing what stands written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male must be consecrated to the Lord – and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is said in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. Now in Jerusalem there was a man called Simeon. He was an upright and devout man; he looked forward to Israel’s comforting and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had set eyes on the Christ of the Lord. Prompted by the Spirit he came to the Temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the Law required, he took him into his arms and blessed God; and he said:

‘Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace,
just as you promised;
because my eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared for all the nations to see,
a light to enlighten the pagans
and the glory of your people Israel.’

As the child’s father and mother stood there wondering at the things that were being said about him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘You see this child: he is destined for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is rejected – and a sword will pierce your own soul too – so that the secret thoughts of many may be laid bare.’
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[H]e is destined for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel… – and a sword will pierce your own soul too.

One of the requirements for anybody who desires to go for Lasik eye surgery to correct short-sightedness is the use of eye drops that bring about tremendous pain for a temporary period of time. This is part of the preliminary checks to ensure that the patient’s eyes are fit to undergo the procedure. Indeed, one’s vision is still blurred for at least five hours after the drops have been administered and the patient is advised not to drive. Strangely enough, all objects in the light appear to become clearer and sharper after the effect has worn out. It is almost as if our eyes have been through a thorough washing. I believe that Jesus’ birth into the world has a similar effect on all who lived during that period of time.

Simeon correctly prophesised that Jesus would cause many believers to be rejected by those who chose to follow Him. This is seen in the death of the early Christian martyrs by virtue of their faith. What must have struck Mary was that nothing less than a sword would pierce her own soul. This would come across to anybody as a shock especially since she is a first-time mother at such a young age. Yet she managed to bear with all of this charitably and patiently in her heart with no sound of resistance. Mary has internalized what St. John has mentioned in the first reading where God’s love is manifested in people who obey His commandments. Obedience is important in this day and age where there are many people who seek to challenge authority and instructions placed before them.

I believe that God’s love came to perfection in Mary through her example of obedience and patience. The example of Mary’s life was certainly refreshing in that age where there was much turmoil in the environment where she lived in. Whilst she did not know what God had in mind for her at the Annunciation and Nativity, all the plans became clearer after the Resurrection. The events that come in to thwart our well-laid life plans often bring us much frustration and God usually gets the first blame. Perhaps we could consider following Mary’s example of bearing everything patiently because our actions will serve to edify others. Our inaction to react to obstacles that distract us from our eternal reward will bring Christ’s love to the world.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
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Prayer: Lord, we pray for the people who suffer patiently for offences that they did not ask for.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for those who provide palliative care to those who need it.

Upcoming Readings:
Wed, 30 Dec – 1 John 2:12-17; Luke 2:36-40; Sixth Day within Christmas Octave
Thu, 31 Dec – 1 John 2:18-21; Jn 1:1-18; Seventh Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Silvester, Pope
Fri, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

The Holy Innocents are the children slaughtered by Herod the Great when he tried to kill the infant Christ.

- Patron Saint Index

The children died for Christ, though they do not know it. The parents mourned for the death of martyrs. The Christ child makes of those as yet unable to speak fit witnesses to Himself.

To what merits of their own do the children owe this kind of victory? They cannot speak, yet they bear witness to Christ. They cannot use their limbs to engage in battle, yet already they bear off the palm of victory.

- From a sermon by bishop St. Quodvultdeus about the Holy Innocents
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1 John 1:5-2:2

This is what we have heard from Jesus Christ,
and the message that we are announcing to you:
God is light; there is no darkness in him at all.
If we say that we are in union with God
while we are living in darkness,
we are lying because we are not living the truth.
But if we live our lives in the light,
as he is in the light,
we are in union with one another,
and the blood of Jesus, his Son,
purifies us from all sin.
If we say we have no sin in us,
we are deceiving ourselves
and refusing to acknowledge our sins,
then God who is faithful and just
will forgive our sins and purify us
from everything that is wrong.
To say that we have never sinned
is to call God a liar
and to show that the word is not in us.
I am writing this, my children
to stop you sinning;
but if anyone should sin,
but we have our advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ, who is just;
he is the sacrifice that takes our sins away,
and not only ours,
but the whole world’s.
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Matthew 2:13-18

After the wise men had left, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you, and escape into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and do away with him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until Herod was dead. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet:

I call my son out of Egypt.

Herod was furious when he realised that he had been outwitted by the wise men and in Bethlehem and its surrounding district he had all the male children killed who were two years old or under, reckoning by the date he had been careful to ask the wise men. It was then that the words spoken through the prophet Jeremiah were fulfilled:

A voice was heard in Ramah,
sobbing and loudly lamenting:
it was Rachael weeping for her children
refusing to be comforted
because they were no more.
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But if we live our lives in the light, as he is in the light, we are in union with one another

Of late I have grown more self-centred. Where once I would get up and offer my seat to elderly people that I see on the bus, lately I have just been ignoring their needs and selfishly holding onto the seat that I have. I used to be more concerned for others, giving money to beggars I see, but nowadays I walk right by them without batting an eyelid. I think to myself sometimes, “It’s not my fault that they are suffering” but there is always a voice that replies, “But you can do something to ease their suffering”.

Today’s first reading tells us that a Christian is one who lives one’s life in the light, just as Jesus Christ did. That life isn’t one that has no sin, for we know of many saints who have lived sinful lives before. Rather it is the life of one who admitted that they have sinned, but repented of their sins and accepted forgiveness through Christ.

Simply put, a saint is one who does not live in darkness, trying to hide their sinfulness and appearing all holy. Rather, a saint is one who truthfully says that one has sinned but is confident in God’s faithfulness that one will be forgiven.

It sounds simple, but every so often, we come across people who, when encouraged to go for confession, would say something like, “What for? I have no sin.” It could be that the person is aware of their sins, but doesn’t want others to know about it. Or it could be that to the best of the person’s knowledge one has no sin, but that one has not examined their conscience, or has not reflected on one’s lives sufficiently. For no one, even the most holy, escapes sin, directly or indirectly.

All have sinned and all are in need of God’s forgiveness. And because all have sinned, even the most innocent are affected by sin, like the Holy Innocents whose feast day we celebrate today. It might sound strange to be celebrating a feast commemorating the massacre of so many children, but what is significant is that these children died for Christ, making them unwitting martyrs.

It is also occasion for us to pause and reflect on our lives, and ask ourselves: How many innocents have suffered – and continue to suffer – through our sins, directly or indirectly?

(Today’s OXYGEN by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: Dear God, we ask Your forgiveness for our many sins, and the forgiveness of many innocent persons who suffer directly or indirectly as a result of our sins.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for remembering the innocent.

Upcoming Readings:
Tue, 29 Dec – 1 John 2:3-11; Luke 2:36-40; Fifth Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Thomas Beckect, Bishop, Martyr
Wed, 30 Dec – 1 John 2:12-17; Luke 2:36-40; Sixth Day within Christmas Octave
Thu, 31 Dec – 1 John 2:18-21; Jn 1:1-18; Seventh Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Silvester, Pope
Fri, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

The Holy Family
We celebrate that Holy Family of Nazareth which is the model for all who fear the Lord and walk in His ways.

- The Sunday Missal
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1 Samuel 1:20-22.24-28

Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son, and called him Samuel ’since’ she said ‘I asked the Lord for him.’

When a year had gone by, the husband Elkanah went up again with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfil his vow. Hannah, however, did not go up, having said to her husband, ‘Not before the child is weaned. Then I will bring him and present him before the Lord and he shall stay there for ever.’

When she had weaned him, she took him up with her together with a three-year old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the temple of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was with them. They slaughtered the bull and the child’s mother came to Eli. She said, ‘If you please, my lord. As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside him, praying to the Lord. This is the child I prayed for, and the Lord granted me what I asked him. Now I make him over to the Lord for the whole of his life. He is made over to the Lord.’
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1 John 3:1-2.21-24

Think of the love that the Father has lavished that the Father has lavished on us,
by letting us be called God’s children;
and that is what we are.
Because the world refused to acknowledge him,
therefore it does not acknowledge us.
My dear people, we are already the children of God
but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed,
all we know is, that when it is revealed
we shall be like him
because we shall see him as he really is.

My dear people,
if we cannot be condemned by our own conscience,
we need not be afraid in God’s presence,
and whatever we ask him,
we shall receive,
because we keep his commandments
and live the kind of life that he wants.
His commandments are these:
that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ
and that we love one another
as he told us to.
Whoever keeps his commandments
lives in God and God lives in him.
We know that he lives in us
by the Spirit that he has given us.
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Luke 2:41-52

Every year the parents of Jesus used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they were up for the feast as usual. When they were on their way home after the feast, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem without his parents knowing it. They assumed he was with the caravan, and it was only after a day’s journey that they went to look for him among their relations and acquaintances. When they failed to find him they went back to Jerusalem looking for him everywhere.

Three days later, they found him in the Temple, sitting among the doctors, listening to them, and asking them questions; and all those who heard him were astounded at his intelligence and his replies. They were overcome when they saw him, and his mother said to him, ‘My child, why have you done this to  us? Se how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.’ ‘Why were you looking for me?’ he replied. ‘Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?’ But they did not understand what he meant.

He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority. His mother stored up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and men.
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He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority.

There is a joke that says that if Mary and Jesus were both sinless, then every time there was an argument in the household of the Holy Family, it must have been Joseph’s fault. But we forget that even though Joseph was not sinless, he was a man of God, one who feared the Lord and did everything he could by the way of the Lord.

In today’s gospel reading, we see that Jesus, at age 12, knew that He was sent by the Father to do the will of the Father. But when Mary and Joseph searched for Him and found Him in the Temple, they wanted Him to return with them. Jesus did not refuse; in all humility, He placed Himself under their authority.

That’s something we often forget about sinless people, not that there are many sinless people around. Sinless people are also loving people. In 1 Corinthians 13, St. Paul tells us about what love is. A loving person who is sinless is also endlessly patient, kind, long-suffering, free of pride, unselfish, and so on. So I think that it is likely that there never was much of an argument in the household of the Holy Family, because everyone gave way to one another in love.

Today as we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family, we are reminded that it is a model for us who fear the Lord. Not only should our families resemble the Holy Family in love, but also, as it says in the second reading, our extended family of brothers and sisters in Christ. We are called to give way to each other in love, under the spiritual leadership of our Father, in obedience to our eldest brother Jesus.

But we are not sinless, and there definitely will be arguments and quarrels when both or more sides refuse to give way. Tempers will be lost and people’s feelings will be hurt. But love is also forgiving. Any relationship or friendship in which the persons involved can forgive each other is bound to grow and develop in greater love. Conversely, any relationship or friendship in which the persons involved cannot forgive each other is doomed.

Today we remember the people we know who have difficulty forgiving someone.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: We pray for the people who are unable to forgive another person, that they may find it in their hearts to begin to pray for the person they cannot forgive, for Jesus tells us to love our enemies and pray for them.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for helping us to forgive our enemies through the power of prayer.

Upcoming Readings:
Mon, 28 Dec – 1 John 1:5-2:2; Matthew 2:13-18; Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs
Tue, 29 Dec – 1 John 2:3-11; Luke 2:36-40; Fifth Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Thomas Beckect, Bishop, Martyr
Wed, 30 Dec – 1 John 2:12-17; Luke 2:36-40; Sixth Day within Christmas Octave
Thu, 31 Dec – 1 John 2:18-21; Jn 1:1-18; Seventh Day within Christmas Octave; Commemoration of St Silvester, Pope
Fri, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Sat, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Memorial for Ss Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church
Sun, 03 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3.5-6; Matthew 2:1-12; Solemnity of the Ephiphany of the Lord

St. Stephen was the first Christian martyr. A deacon and a preacher, all we know of him is related in the Acts of the Apostles. While preaching the gospel in the streets, angry Jews who believed his message to be blasphemy dragged him outside the city, and stoned him to death. In the crowd, on the side of the mob, was a man who would later be known as St. Paul.

- Patron Saint Index
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Acts of the Apostles 6:8-10; 7:54-59

Stephen was filled with grace and power and began to work miracles and great signs among the people. But then certain people came forward to debate with Stephen, smoe from Cyrene and Alexandria who were members of the synagogue called the Synagogue of Freedmen, and others from Cilicia and Asia. They found they could not get the better of him beause of his wisdom, and because it was the Spirit that prompted what he said. They were infuriated when they heard what he said, and ground their teeth at him.

But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. ‘I can see heaven thrown open’ he said ‘and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this all the members of the council shouted out and stopped their ears with their hands; then they all rushed at him, sent him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses put down their clothes at the feet of a young man called Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen said in invocation, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he knelt down and said aloud, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’; and with these words he fell asleep. Saul entirely approved of the killing.
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Matthew 10:17-22

Jesus said to his apostles: ‘Beware of men: they will hand you over to sanhedrins and scourge you in their synagogues. You will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the pagans. But when they hand you over, do not worry about how to speak or what to say; what you are to say will be given to you when the time comes; because it is not you who will be speaking; the Spirit of your Father will be speaking in you.

‘Brother will betray brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name; but the man who stands firm to the end will be saved.’
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Do not worry about how to speak or what to say

There is a field of our Christian religion which I’m not comfortable with. It’s called apologetics, or defence of the faith. In apologetics, which is also present in other religions, adherents defend their religion using reasonable and rational arguments.

Some apologists I’ve met like to debate and argue verbally, memorising certain ‘formulaic’ expressions to rebut charges made by others, and so silencing them. Some apologists also feel that it is their duty to teach others the truth about Christianity, so that they would stop persecuting Christians and might even become one.

It makes me uncomfortable not because of what is said, but the manner of which it is often said. It often comes across to me as if apologists want to prove other people’s beliefs are wrong by proving that their own belief is right. I know of apologists who are always on the lookout for books by other Christian apologists, and are always telling me I should read this book or that, which quite frankly, I’m not interested in.

That’s because I’m quite inspired by St. Stephen, whose feast day we celebrate today. The gospel reading for today tells us not to prepare our defence. Jesus was telling people that it is the Holy Spirit that will tell us what to say when other people persecute us.

Of course, Jesus didn’t say that people will stop persecuting us if we successfully defend our faith, or that people will stop saying bad things about our faith. In all likelihood, when they cannot respond further through rational or reasonable arguments, they will crucify us just as they did our Lord.

So why is the field of apologetics present in our faith? One thing that apologetics is good for is that it gives us rational and reasonable explanations for our faith. It helps our intellect to understand and accept our faith better.

Faith is a shield, not a sword. It shields us from the attacks of the Evil One, not necessarily the attacks of men. Apologetics helps us to rationalize our beliefs better especially when we are attacked by the Evil One. But I strongly believe it should not be used as a sword to attack others which, unfortunately, it sometimes is.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: Lord, help us not be blinded by all things material so that we can look out for and truly appreciate the signs that You send us each day.

Thanksgiving: God our Father, thank You for the gift of Jesus Christ, whom You sent to save the world.

Upcoming Readings:
Sun, 27 Dec – 1 Samuel 1:20-22. 24-28; 1 John 3:1-2. 21-24; Luke 2:41-52; Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph; Singapore: Family Life Sunday