Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 18 August 2025 Monday, Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time, Year I Judges 2:11-19 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 19:16-22
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Virginia, USA, August 2021.
Your words today, O God our Father are so disheartening not only because after a week of joyful stories of Moses and Joshua and the Israelites finally nearing the Promised Land, we begin work and classes this Monday with the distaff side of Israel's history, of their low point of being repeatedly attacked and defeated by their enemies.
But more sad and disheartening is the fact that low point in their history was also their low point in their faith in you - it was all due to their repeated falling into sin of idolatry, of worshipping false gods instead of you alone.
Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, he would be with the judge and save them from the power of their enemies as long as the judge lived; it was thus the Lord took pity on their distressful cries of affliction under their oppressors. But when the judge died, they would relapse and do worse than their ancestors, following other gods in service and worship, relinquishing none of their evil practices or stubborn conduct (Judges 2:18-19).
And that is the painful truth of the story, of the fact still true among us today: the problem, the trouble are all with us.
Yes, Lord, many times we are like your people during that time of the judges: you keep on saving us from troubles of our own making but once we are able to rebound in life, we go back to our old ways of sins and self-centeredness, forgetting you and your love; we do not have the false gods of old like Baal but we keep on turning away from you, Lord, worshipping fame and wealth, power and control, comfort and safety; though through all these you keep on coming to save us, giving us all the chances to be better in Jesus Christ your Son, we are like the young man in the gospel who can't let go of our many possessions, choosing to leave sad than follow Jesus empty but filled with love and and meaning in life. Help us fix this trouble in us, Lord. Amen.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 07 August 2025 Wednesday, Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time, Year I Numbers 20:1-13 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 16:13-23
Lord Jesus Christ, today I pray for the grace and virtue of listening especially in this world so filled with noise with everyone and everything speaking even machines like cars and elevators and phones; how sad that photos about listening are images of headphones and ear pods that are not totally about listening which is more than hearing the sound but also hearing the silence. That is why listening is a virtue, a grace, and an art. Why, even prayer is listening! And that is what we must pray more these days that we learn to listen more in order to truly pray, hear your voice in silence.
The responsorial psalm says it so well this day, "Today if you hear his voice, harden not your hearts."
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father” (Matthew 16:13-17).
You always ask us, Jesus and we can easily answer you when it concerns other people but when you ask us personally, when your question is addressed as "YOU" - we rarely can answer because we do not listen both to you and to ourselves.
Without listening, we cannot answer and follow you, Lord; without listening, we cannot obey you, Lord; without listening, we cannot stay and and remain in you, Lord.
Yesterday in the Feast of the Transfiguration, the voice of the Father was clearly heard, telling us to listen to you, O Lord Jesus, his Chosen Son (Luke 9:35) and we still do not listen.
A 1311 painting of the Transfiguration by Italian artist Duccio di Buoninsegna from commons.wikimedia.org.
Why was only Peter able to answer your question? Maybe because he was the only one who truly listened and understood your question, Lord; and maybe, he was the only one who truly listened and heard the answer from the Father.
Even Moses refused to listen
to you, Lord when he struck twice
the rock at Meribah for water
contrary to your command that cost
his denial of entrance into the
Promised Land;
forgive us, Jesus
for the many times we
have refused to listen
and failed to faithfully
do your work in the way
you want it be done;
forgive us, Jesus,
in listening more
to the ways of the world
than to the ways of God.
Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul Monday, Memorial of the First Martyrs of Rome, 30 June 2025 Genesis 18:16-33 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 8:18-22
Photo by author, Cabo Da Roca, Pundaqit, San Antonio, Zambales, 15 May 2025.
*Apostle, from "apostolein", to be sent forth; Disciple, from "discipulous", to follow.
A day after celebrating the Solemnity of your Apostles Saints Peter and Paul, you gave us today Jesus the memorial of the first martyrs of the Holy Roman Church who were killed during the reign of Nero in 64 A.D.; many of them were literally used as torches and lamps when their mutilated bodies were burned to light the city of Rome.
How inspiring, dear Jesus to hear their story of witnessing their faith in you at that time; grant us the same courage today to always follow you, Jesus, to follow your footsteps by doing your work and most specially, in carrying your Cross; let us seek sanctity regardless of our social status, age or skills.
Let us imitate Abraham in the first reading who walked with God, his visitors at Mamre; like Abraham walking with you, following you, Lord, let us work more for the conversion of others not their judgment; in following you, Jesus, let us think more of how to save followers lost in their directions in life; instead of leaving them behind on their own in their evil ways, may we appeal to God for their conversion.
May we not be like the two hesitant disciples in today's gospel: though willing to follow you, Jesus, one was impulsive and the other was cautious; give us courage to do a sincere reality check today of our discipleship in you: help us bring back the joy and zeal of following you, Jesus when we started to heed your call of discipleship; let us dare again to leave the sides to walk at the middle of the road following you Jesus even to the Cross; help us bring back that desire to go near you, Jesus, to always seek you and follow you by forgetting our selves; and like Abraham, let us be gracious always to one another as your followers. Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City
First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church photo from ucatholic.com.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday in the Seventh Week of Easter, 06 June 2025 Acts 25:13-21 <*((((>< + ><))))*> John 21:15-19
Photo by author, Cabo Da Roca, Pundaquit, San Antonio, Zambales, 15 May 2025.
I love you, Lord And I lift my voice To worship you Oh, my soul rejoice Take joy my King In what you hear May it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ear...
I just felt singing that lovely song, Jesus as I prayed on your words today; felt so good, so comforting, especially if sang at times like when everything is flowing smoothly in life, when obstacles are overcome, when there is more joy than sadness, more triumphs and success, more healthy than sickly; how easy it is to say "I love you, Lord" unless you Jesus asks us "do you love me" thrice.
It is different when you are the one asking the question, Jesus because you know everything, you know very well how imperfect our love while at the same time you know so well how we try hard in loving you by forgetting ourselves, following you and carrying our Cross.
Give us the courage and strength to say "I love you, Lord" dear Jesus for it is only in first loving you that we are able to follow you. Amen.
Lord My Chef Sunday Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Fourth Sunday in Easter, Cycle C, 11 May 2025 Acts 13:14, 43-52 ><}}}}*> Revelation 7:9, 14-17 ><}}}}*> John 10:27-30
The new Pope, Leo XIV, appears on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, 09 May 2025; photo from vaticannews.va
What a lovely fourth Sunday in Easter also known as “Good Shepherd Sunday” when we are blessed with a new Pope – Leo XIV – who will shepherd us into this modern time. Truly, Jesus Christ our Good Shepherd knows us so well that he did not make us wait long in having a new Pope in this troubled time.
Jesus said: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:27-28).
“I know them.” How lovely are these words of Jesus to us, his “sheep” especially for those going through a lot of trials and difficulties, for those feeling lost and empty, for those about to give up on life.
Let us dwell on his words “I know them”.
For the Jews and in the Bible, knowing is more of the heart than of the mind. Knowing a person is not just knowing one’s name but most of all of being in a personal relationship, an affinity with the person.
In declaring “I know them”, Jesus affirms how he personally regards each one as somebody dear to him, somebody close to him. We are all a somebody, a someone to Jesus whom he personally loves and cares for.
This we have seen among the people we have met in Lent like the apostles Peter, James and John during the transfiguration, the prodigal son, the woman caught in adultery. Or during the Holy Week like Judas who betrayed the Lord, Peter who denied Jesus thrice, Dimas the thief, the centurion who believed in him after his death on the Cross, John and the Blessed Mother at the foot of the Cross. They were all in their most difficult situations in life yet Jesus knew them so well that he assured them of his loving presence, lifting them up to move on with life.
Recall also the people we met this Easter Season like Mary Magdalene and companions early in the morning later followed by Peter and the beloved disciple who all found the tomb empty, the disciples at the upper room with locked doors that evening of Easter, the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, Thomas Didymus, the disciples led by Peter at breakfast with Jesus at the shore of Lake Tiberias. In their most joyous moments in life amid the darkness and emptiness, the doubts and unbelief or blindness following Easter, they were accompanied and joined by the Risen Lord to ensure and assure them that indeed he is alive and will always be with them.
In the same manner, think also of those moments in your own life of darkness and emptiness, whether negatively or positively, for better or for worse… who remained standing by your side?
Jesus. Only Jesus. And always Jesus. Because he knows us so well.
Jesus is truly the Good Shepherd who knows us so well even in these modern times where there are more vehicles and traffic, more disruptions to life yet he continues to shepherd us like the many shepherds still in many countries in Europe and the Middle East.
And that makes this passage most touching and refreshing because though times may have changed, Jesus has remained personally committed with each one of us. He keeps on looking for us, searching us, following us. Loving us most of all. But, are we present in Jesus?
Notice the four verbs in this short gospel we have today: ascribed to Jesus are the verbs “know” and “give” while to us the sheep, “hear” and “follow” where problems always happen. Do we “follow” what we “hear”? “To hear” is to recognize the authority and importance of the speaker’s words; it is to enter into a communion with him, to put oneself in his guidance, to “follow” him as his disciple.
Jesus speaks to us daily but nobody cares because right after waking up, most of us today look for our cellphone than pray! We are more interested with the “likes” and “followers” we have garnered from our previous posts. We are more enthralled with the seductive voices and images of social media that feed on our ego and senses, giving us false feelings of security and acceptance. We would rather be consumers than disciples who are called to sacrifice like the shepherd.
Photo of a sheep’s fleece by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, 2022.
Though life has become more affluent these days, it has ironically become more empty and lost without direction because we just keep on having and possessing, consuming and ingesting everything the world offers that leave us guilty and empty because we cannot experience any sense of fulfillment and meaning.
How ironic that amid this pandemic of “obesity”, we fill ourselves mostly with trash and poison, literally and figuratively speaking that we feel so lost more than ever with so much time wasted and sadly, life and relationships thrown away. Everything has become more of the mind than of the heart with persons being commodified as things, everything seen in monetary terms, so utilitarian in nature.
Only Jesus “knows” us so well that is why only he “gives eternal life” as Peter exclaimed in this Saturday gospel in the third week of Easter, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and we are convinced that you are the Holy One of God” (Jn.6:68-69).
Unlike anybody, Jesus is the Son of God sent to gather us, to save us and to bring us closer to the Father so that no one among us shall perish. That is the plan of God fulfilled by Christ which we must continue like the apostles as we have heard in the first reading when Paul and Barnabas preached the Gospel of Jesus to the gentiles.
This Sunday, Jesus our Good Shepherd assures us, wherever we may be – in darkness and emptiness, or under the dark clouds of a thunderstorm, under a thatched roof of misery – that he knows us so well. He loves us.
Feel the warmth of Christ’s loving heart this Sunday by being present with your loved ones, the people you know so well like Jesus. Let us pray:
Lord Jesus, you are our Good Shepherd and we are your sheep; only you know us so well, only you can give us eternal life, only you can keep us safe not to be snatched by anyone like the corrupt and shallow candidates running for office again this election; give us the wisdom, courage and faith to follow you and stand by you like those elders in white garments seen by John in his vision of heaven in the second reading; let us vote wisely, let us not waste that power you shared with us. Amen.
Quiet Storm by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 05 February 2025
Photo by author, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, Dumaguete City, 07 November 2024.
Discipline is a word so misunderstood these days that too often, it is frowned upon or even feared by many. In this age of so much “freedom” without any regard to “responsibility”, discipline has become its main casualty.
Discipline has very interesting origins. From the Latin verb discere which is to learn or to follow, its noun is disciplina for teaching or learning from which came the word discipulus for disciple, a follower or a pupil. Hence, a person of discipline is one who follows or obeys teachings.
The more disciplined a person is, the more free a person becomes!
As we have mentioned at the start, due to the wrong perception of “freedom” these days as the ability to do whatever one wants, many see discipline as suppression of freedom. But what is most true is its opposite – the more disciplined a person is, the more free the person becomes!
Photo by author, sunrise at St. Paul Spirituality Center, Pico, La Trinidad, Benguet, 06 January 2025.
When we discipline ourselves in every aspect of our lives like in food and drink intake, in using our time wisely, in budgeting our money and resources among other things, the more we become free to many other things in life. Remove discipline and do whatever you like in your life, eventually you become “unfree” because definitely you will miss your responsibilities and obligations like studies in school and duties at home and the office.
Freedom is never absolute. It has always been limited to choosing and doing what is good. When freedom is abused, it can lead us into being not free at all.
Likewise, some people think discipline is temporary and optional. Many believe that discipline is just for kids and young people who ought to follow their parents and elders. What about adults following their superiors and those above them in the natural and social hierarchy of things and relationships? This perhaps explain the reason why there is a growing complaint against young people lacking respect to elders and those in authority.
Discipline is a life-long process, the one sure thing we would need even rely upon so much as we age and get old. Discipline is imposed and taught in our younger age so that we would mature, grow and develop as persons. It is a lifelong process, a habit, a good that we keep on doing until we die. Or, even if we get old and sick, discipline is our North Star, the Polaris within ourselves especially when everything is dark, when we seem lost in life. Discipline enables us to succeed and be fulfilled in life. Find any bum and surely you shall find no discipline at all; but, you can never find a successful person without any discipline.
“Jesus Unrolls Book In the Synagogue” painting by James Tissot (1886-1894), brooklynmuseum.org
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the most perfect example of a disciplined person, of leading a disciplined life. All evangelists tell us how Jesus always went to the synagogue on a sabbath to worship and to preach. Most of all, Jesus always prayed early in the morning or later in the evening in some deserted place. These were all forms of discipline He must have learned from His parents Mary and Joseph who were both portrayed in the gospels as devout Jews, both with high degrees of discipline in life even before Christ was born.
Prayer after all is a discipline, something we have to cultivate that leads to a loving relationship with God and with others too! And here we find the deeper reality of discipline which is not just a human effort and endeavor. Discipline is the work of God, His gift and grace to each one of us to have fulfillment in life
Discipline is not just a human effort; discipline is the work of God too!
Brothers and sisters: You have also forgotten the exhortation addressed to you as children: My son, do not disdain the discipline of the Lord or lose heart when reproved by him; for whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges. Endure your trials as “discipline”… At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain, yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it (Hebrews 12:5-7, 11).
Photo by author, St. Scholastica Spirituality Center, Tagaytay, August 2024.
How I wish parents would still use that analogy by the author of the Letter to the Hebrews regarding discipline. When we were growing up, our parents would always explain to us after scolding us due to misdemeanor or a mistake that it was to discipline us in doing what is right or what is good.
This is something so evident these days, when you hear the older folks saying how life was more orderly before because of discipline unlike today. And one may find this lack of discipline everywhere – in public places not only home, including in churches. Partly to be blamed for that is us, the older folks who have stopped teaching discipline to kids and the youth.
Lately I have been seeing many of my former students in elementary and high school. I have always known many of them hated me when in school because I was a strict teacher (and priest). Including many of our teachers too! That is why whenever we talked about their school days, I always asked them to forgive me for making their lives so difficult as I demanded excellence and precision in their studies and most of all, discipline at all times like cleanliness in their clothing and bearing, order and silence in classrooms, and of course, proper decorum inside the church.
At the wedding of one of my former student with his classmates in January 2020.
Surprisingly, they always ended up thanking me for the discipline I have taught and instilled in them that according to them led to their success in both their personal and professional life. Many of them have their family of their own now with some living overseas. It brings me so much joy with some tears when they tell me how they have taught their own children of the discipline I drilled in them about studies and reading, of prayer, and of simply being the very best for God in everything. It is the same thing with some of our teachers who have remained some of my dearest friends today with some living and working abroad. In fact, they claimed that it was my “terroristic discipline” that greatly prepared them for their lives and work in foreign lands and cultures.
We need to discipline ourselves for God’s grace to work in us. And remember, grace builds on nature – that’s the beauty of discipline: the more we practice it, the more blessed we become! It is a built-in app or program God has installed in each of us. Use it extensively by switching it on always. In case there’s a glitch, still, switch it on and surely it would work. As always. Have a disciplined week ahead.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday, Fourth Week in Ordinary Time, Year I, 04 February 2025 Hebrews 12:1-4 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 5:21-43
Photo by author, sunrise at the Sea (Lake) of Galilee, the Holy Land, 18 May 2019.
When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea (Mark 5:21).
Lord Jesus Christ:
How lovely to hear this story of your frequent crossing of the sea to the other side to reach out to more people hungry and thirsty for your words that comfort and forgive, ease one's burdens and most especially for your healing touch.
You always come to us, Jesus, reaching out to us when all we have to do is follow you and as much as possible, be near you to touch you like that sick woman who touched your clothe after Jairus had begged you to come to touch his sick and dying daughter.
That's all we have to do: follow you, be near you, and touch you; but, of the large crowd there like today, only one dared to touch you; only one father had the courage to ask you to come and lay your hands on his daughter.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD in France, 2023.
Give me Jesus the courage to come to you, to get near you and touch you with faith and desire to meet you, to speak to you, to be with you; take away my fears of leaving the safety of the sidewalks, of walking the main street that leads to your Cross when in fact, it was you who have paid the price for me by dying on the Cross.
Let the words of the author of the Letter to the Hebrews sink in me, "In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood" (12:4) because I am always afraid, always hesitant in following you, in touching you.
Touch me, Jesus so I may cross the sea with you despite the storm and giant waves; touch me, Jesus so I may cross the street and walk beside you in your arduous journey; touch me, Jesus so I may stand with you at your Cross. Amen.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday, Memorial of St. Francis de Sales, Bishop & Doctor of the Church, 24 January 2025 Hebrews 8:6-13 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Mark 3:13-19
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him (Mark 3:13).
How lovely to my ears, to my heart, to repeat over and over again as I bask into your warmth O Lord Jesus Christ with these powerful account by Saint Mark today: "summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him."
Thank you, Jesus, for the grace and courage to answer your call, to come to you, to follow you like the original Twelve; forgive me, Jesus when your call gets into my head than into my heart and arms and legs; forgive me, Jesus when your want for me inflates my ego to one extreme and makes me doubt myself at the other end; bless me, Jesus, to always cherish your call to me using my name as I also renew my yes to you; keep me faithful in being close to you so that I may share you whenever you send me.
I pray also, dear Jesus, for all the others you want, you call but refuse to respond and worst, doubt if you really wanted them; through the intercession of your tireless saint Francis de Sales we pray that you grant them the grace to move on with life, to let go of their past hurts and sins for you are now our perfect mediator of the perfect covenant (first reading); may your kindness and truth meet in them finally. Amen.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Our gospel today speaks so well of your graduation when “Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and even illness. The names of the Twelve Apostles are these…” (Matthew 10:1).
See how Matthew distinguished the Twelve: first, as disciples then as Apostles, a beautiful reminder to us all that first we learn and then we are sent out like you upon graduation.
“Disciple” is from the Latin word discipulos or follower which came from the verb discere, to learn. A follower or tagasunod in Filipino is a learner, someone who learns from a teacher. From it came also the word discipline; that is why, a disciplined person – one who is masunurin – is one who follows and obeys always not only persons but also the truths and new learnings he/she may have learned.
On the other hand, the word “apostle” is from the Greek apostolos which is to be sent forth. In the gospel, the Apostles are the Twelve members of Christ’s inner circle, those closest with Jesus. Though the gospel would always have that distinction between a disciple and an apostle, they are essentially inseparable because before one is sent forth, he/she has to be learned first. Therefore, every baptized person is both a disciple and an apostle, a learner of the Lord’s ways and teachings who is sent out to proclaim the Gospel to others in words and in deeds.
Every Christian is a disciple and an apostle with a special relationship with Jesus Christ.
That is most specially true with you, my dear Fatimanians, students and graduates of Our Lady of Fatima University here in Antipolo City.
“The Exhortation to the Apostles” painting by James Tissot (ca.1886-1894) from commons.wikimedia.org.
Being a disciple and an apostle is a continuous process of learning, following and sending.
Don’t ever think that graduation is the end of your studies. The more you get into your professional life, the more you must pursue learning to follow new trends in your fields of specialization as you are sent not only across the Philippines but even abroad, across the globe like most of our alumni.
Being a disciple and an apostle, learning and following and being sent, are more of the inside than of the outside. Remember that first lesson of the pencil: what is inside is most important, not the outside which today is given more importance and prominence especially in social media.
Puro palabas. All about the outside and externalities that are superficial like having the most likes, becoming viral and trending. It is all show which is what the word palabas means. Showbiz na show biz tayo pero walang laman.
When you look at the mirror like what the BINI would sing, “salamin, salamin…”, what do you see? Are you a reflection of a man or a woman of depth and meaning or one who is empty?
Learning is not about stacking information and data inside the brain like a computer; learning involves the education of the heart, of becoming “man as man himself” as we say here at OLFU. “To rise to the top” is not to rule over others but becoming “the glory of God in man fully alive”, reflecting our mottos Veritas et Misericordia.
As you leave the portals of our beloved alma mater, ask yourself: am I more loving and understanding with all the knowledge and learning I have gained after years of studies here at OLFU?
Education literally means “to lead out”… from darkness into light, from slavery into freedom, from ignorance into wisdom. St. Thomas Aquinas wrote that the more we gain knowledge, the more we become intelligent, the more we must become holy. A truly intelligent person is one who does what is good and avoids evil and sinful. But, why are we as a nation of so many graduates still kulelat in many aspects in life?
From The Valenzuela Times, 02 July 2024.
You must have seen that photo of our nursing student carrying on his back his girlfriend while crossing the flooded McArthur Highway in Valenzuela City last week.
At first I was so happy seeing that chivalry is still alive in this modern age; later that night, I felt disappointed and so sad when I saw the negative reactions. Most netizens clicked the LOL emoticons with others commenting the girl was OA, saying, sana nagholding hands na lang sila. At least some were honest enough to admit their jealousy, commenting sanaol!
Why the negative reaction these days when somebody does something good like sacrificing? Why do people seem to approve when we see videos and reels of wrongdoings and stupidities? Have we become a nation of delulu?
Even the words we use are being altered. I cannot understand why a girl is now spelled as gurl? Somebody asked me who is my bias among the lovely members of BINI; why say bias when you mean favorite?
Call me old and conservative but the trend these days seem to be rejoicing in what is negative and wrong and frowning at whatever is good and beautiful. Clearly it is not generation gap but more of a symptom of a sick society and generation, exactly like what Hosea mentioned in the first reading, of how people have turned away from God worshipping idols. Who and what are these modern idols we worship and follow these days? Do we still call on God our Father and to His Son Jesus Christ our Savior?
Photo by author, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, 2023.
If there is anything most important we must have learned in our university, it is the value of prayer, of opening to God like those three children at Fatima in 1917. See how the Blessed Mother, our Patroness, came to see and teach St. Francisco and his sister St. Jacinta Marto with their elder cousin Sr. Lucia for six consecutive months every 13th day to pray, do penance and celebrate the Mass.
It is my hope that you continue to pray the Rosary, you continue to celebrate Masses on Sundays after your graduation to always learn and follow Jesus who actually sends you to serve those most in need as nurses, medical technologists, pharmacists, accountants, and criminologists. Be the loving hands, the healing hands of Jesus Christ!
Remember what I have been telling you since I came here in Our Lady of Fatima University: even now that you are professionals, continue to study hard, work harder, and pray hardest. God bless you, dear graduates of 2024!
From the cbcpnews.net, 13 May 2022, at the Parish of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, Valenzuela City.
lordmychef.com 