Bishop Richard Ng of Miri, Malaysia, said only Jesus Christ can free people from the burdens of sin, resentment, fear and hatred as he presided over Mass at Three Saints Chapel at Radio Veritas Asia (RVA) headquarters on October 26.
In his homily, the bishop reflected on the Gospel reading, explaining how Jesus offers both spiritual freedom and healing to those weighed down by life’s struggles.
“In setting her spirit free, Jesus is also setting her body free,” Ng said, referring to the Gospel account of Jesus’ healing ministry.
He explained that in Jewish thought, sickness was often associated with sin, so the forgiveness of sins was understood as bringing healing to the whole person.
Bishop Ng said Jesus continues to offer freedom today, not only from spiritual burdens but also from the emotional struggles that can hold people back.
“Jesus wants to set us free from all our burdens, from the pressures in life, from maybe unforgiveness or resentment that we have been holding on, the grudges that can cripple us in fear,” he said.
The bishop connected this message to the Christian identity of believers as children of God, emphasizing that God desires the salvation of everyone through Jesus Christ.
“God comes to save everyone through Jesus,” he said.
Bishop Ng urged those attending the Mass to invite Jesus into their lives and ask him to free them from whatever prevents them from living in the fullness of their faith.
“May we open our hearts, open our minds, open our lives to Him so that we can be truly free to be children of God and heirs of the Kingdom,” he said.
RVA priests, including General Manager Fr. Felmar Castrodes Fiel, SVD, and Program Director Fr. John Mi Shen, concelebrated the Mass.
Bishop Ng was visiting RVA in Quezon City as part of the Diocese of Miri’s cooperation with the Asian Catholic media organization in broadcasting and digital evangelization. On October 26, RVA and the diocese signed a memorandum of understanding to share selected Catholic programs, explore content development and training, and consider the possibility of future Malay-language programming.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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