Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas, Priest & Doctor of the Church, 28 January 2026 2 Samuel 7:4-7 <*[[[[>< +++ ><]]]]*> Mark 4:1-20
Photo by Nikola u010cedu00edkovu00e1 on Pexels.com
"May tainga ang lupa, may pakpak ang balita."
A Filipino saying to express how news and rumors travel so fast because "The soil (or land) has ears, news has wings."
It sounds funny, Lord Jesus that this saying came to my mind upon hearing your parable that started with your words "Hear this! A sower went out..." and ended, "Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear" (Mark 4:3, 9).
What an art you have endowed each of us Lord with two ears so that we may listen and hear twice than speak; how lovely you have shaped our ears that when put together, they look like a heart and yet, we rarely listen at all to you and with others.
Make us like the good soil, Jesus: open to receive your words, open to welcome your many possibilities, open to simply be ourselves so that you may transform us like the seeds that grew and produced fruits.
Remind us, Lord Jesus, like David by Nathan that far more better than buildings on land is our hearts where you desire most to dwell; may our hearts remain your temple planted on good, firm soil that it may be felt alive always.
Teach us to imitate your great Saint Thomas Aquinas we remember today: that we may cultivate to prepare our hearts and minds to become like the good soil so that your seeds of the Gospel may grow and bear fruit for your greater glory. Amen.
Lord My Chef Simbang Gabi Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Fourth Sunday in Advent-A, Simbang Gabi-5&6, 21 December 2025 Isaiah 7:10-14 ><}}}}*> Romans 1:1-7 ><}}}}*> Matthew 1:18-24
Photo by author, moon over Istanbul, Turkiye, 02 November 2025.
Allow me on this final Sunday of Advent and fifth day of our Simbang Gabi to begin my reflection with a another Filipino movie released in 1983, Nagalit ang Buwan sa Haba ng Gabi starring Dindo Fernando with Laurice Guillen who played the role as his wife in the Flor de Luna TV series in the 80’s.
Don’t worry… I know something about this movie because I have seen it being the operator of the Betamax player when my mother watched it. And if I remember it right, Laurice had “lent” her husband Dindo to another woman as his mistress; it was an extra-marital affair “with consent”. Basta. When things were already getting offhand as Dindo had a near-fatal heart attack due to over-fatigue in his work and life, Laurice reminded him to finally decide to stop his affair because “kahit buwan magagalit sa haba ng gabi.” (That’s how poetic our movies and music!)
That catchy movie title came as I prayed today’s first reading and gospel that mentioned Isaiah’s prophecy of the coming of the Messiah to be called Emmanuel – emanu ‘Elohim – which means in Hebrew God-is-with-us.
The Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying: Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the netherworld, or high as the sky!” But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the Lord!” Then Isaiah said: “Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel” (Isaiah 7:10-14).
Ahaz was one of the notoriously evil Kings of Judah who revived the barbarous custom of human sacrifice as he followed other idolatrous practices of their neighboring pagans especially the Assyrians.
When the king of Syria was threatening and later attacked Jerusalem, God told Ahaz through Isaiah to trust in Him alone for He shall save the Jewish people, explicitly warning him against entering into any alliances with Judah’s pagan neighbors. But Ahaz disregarded all these as he secretly entered into military alliances with his pagan neighbors in the belief they could defend Judah against the threat of Syria.
To prove His fidelity and truthfulness in His promise of protecting Judah, God asked Ahaz to ask for any sign from Him; the king declined, pretending he did not want to test God when in fact He knew already of his secret alliances with Judah’s pagan neighboring countries. That was when Isaiah declared in exasperation, “Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” That’s how I likened Isaiah to Laurice Guillen, complaining to the stubborn King Ahaz, as if warning him “baka magalit ang buwan sa haba ng gabi.”
View of a decorated Christmas tree and tower of the Franciscan Monastery of St Saviour locally also known as San Salvador monastery in the Christian Quarter Old city East Jerusalem
How sad when we are like King Ahaz with God who always encourages us to come to Him, to be intimate with Him, to trust Him, even encouraging us to ask Him for signs just to prove that He loves us so much.
What a shame when we pretend like Ahaz of not testing God as if we are faithful to Him when in fact we have already made up our mind or had made a decision on something as we totally disregard God’s suggestions and instructions! Worst of all, we are so convinced in ourselves that God does not know at all of what is really in our hearts!
Let us be honest: oftentimes, we reject God’s offer of signs and His encouragements not because we love and respect Him but simply we doubt Him. Like Ahaz, we believe more in ourselves or in the prevailing way of thinking of most people we find in social media or what ever science tells us especially these days of modern technologies.
And what happens next? We fail. It is while amid our guilt feelings and sorrow that we realize later how through our family and friends and the church that God was right after all. If only we have been more sincere, more open and had the courage to change our mind and decisions…
But, despite all these, the good news is that God remains with us, still loving us, forgiving us, and most of all giving us another chance to make better. Like with King Ahaz despite his rejection of God and His plans, we too are given with the sign of Jesus Christ who had come and continues to come to encourage us to keep on following Him despite our weaknesses and failures.
Francisco Goya’s painting, “Dream of St. Joseph” (El Sueno de San Jose) done in 1772; from en.wikimedia.org.
Here we find the great sign of Joseph, the righteous man who completely trusted God.
Like Mary, Joseph was encouraged by God to change his mind and decision, to trust Him completely to fulfill the prophecy of Jesus, the greatest of all signs.
Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her”… All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home (Matthew 1:20, 22-24).
Photo by Ar. Philip Santiago, Church of St. Joseph, Nazareth, Israel, October 2025.
Each one of us is like Joseph, a sign of God’s presence, of God-with-us especially when life is dark and difficult, when others are confused with all the cacophonous sounds of the world centered on ego and materialism.
Every prophecy of God is fulfilled through a combination of active cooperation of man with the Divine plan which is what St. Paul is reminding us in the second reading. We are all “called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God” (Rom. 1:1) who is Jesus Christ.
We are all weak like St. Paul or King Ahaz or even Joseph who did not know the whole story before of Mary’s pregnancy; by being open to God’s encouragement, to the many signs He sends us, what we must consider is not our weaknesses nor insignificance in the world but the power and reality of Jesus “established as Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness through the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom.1:4).
Photo by author, “St. Joseph Protector of the Child Jesus”, 2024.
Advent and Christmas happen when despite all odds especially with what other people are saying or conventional wisdom tells us, we still follow that little voice of encouragement of God from the innermost part of our hearts.
Like Joseph, it was not superstition that he obeyed God’s instructions through an Angel in his dream when he awoke. It was his deep and matured faith in God that made him decide to change his mind, to take that deep plunge of faith in God. In taking Mary as his wife, Joseph expressed his great love for God so that in taking Mary, Christ came into the world.
This final Sunday in Advent as we approach Christmas Day, we are encouraged to trust God completely by making Jesus truly present first in us and then with others. God is merciful and forgiving, always encouraging us to come back to Him, to obey Him, to be like Him. But remember too, long dark nights end that we might get caught off guard of Christ’s coming. Baka magalit din sa atin ang buwan sa haba ng gabi.Amen. Have a blessed and meaningful Christmas!
Lord Jesus Christ, teach me to imitate you in bringing the good news by inspiring others to follow you.
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who nprovided for them out of their resources (Luke 8:1-3).
So, why do I follow you, Jesus? What inspires me in your bringing the good news of God's Kingdom? Here are some, Lord:
I follow you, Jesus because in you I feel loved and welcomed despite who I am like the Twelve Apostles who were of most diverse backgrounds and personalities yet, were united in you; I follow you, Jesus because in you there is warmth and lightness, of forgiveness and healing like those women who followed you after being freed from evil possessions and healed of many sickness; I follow you, Jesus because you inspire me to leave everything behind as I find everything in you like those women who provided for you from their resources.
Teach me Jesus to proclaim to bring to share your gospel of God's Kingdom to others by finding life in you. Amen
Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, June 2025.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 02 September 2025 Tuesday in the Twenty-Second Week of Ordinary Time, Year I 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, 9-11 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 4:31-37
Photo by author, sunrise at the Lake of Galilee, Israel, May 2017.
Let your light shine on me, Jesus, keep me "alert and sober so that I may continue to encourage one another and build one another up" (1 Thessalonians 5:6, 11); let your light shine in me, Jesus, fill me with your authority and power to disclose truth and expose evil as people nowadays are so used to sin as very ordinary, tolerable and acceptable; let your light shine in me, Jesus, fill me with your Spirit to always proclaim in words and in deeds your gospel of salvation from self-centeredness, materialism, and relativism that have all tried deleting God and prayer in life; despite my sinfulness and weaknesses, help me bring you Jesus to those burdened and lost, sick and confused after being so misled by the world's many lies and broken promises. Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 22 August 2025 Friday, Memorial of the Queenship of Mary Isaiah 9:1-6 ><}}}*> + ><}}}*> + ><}}}*> Luke 1:39-47
First anniversary of the Canonical Coronation of the National Pilgrm Image of Our Lady of Fatima, 25 February 2025.
Eighth days after celebrating her glorious Assumption into heaven, we rejoice today, O God, for your infinite love and mercy in giving us this Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary; it is a Friday, the end of school, the end of work for most of us and I wonder, loving Father, what could surprise us today like when you sent Archangel Gabriel to Mary in Nazareth to announce to her the Good News?
It is raining again, Lord: we are so drenched in bad news for weeks while many places are still literally under water; we are so fed up with our leaders who are wolves in sheep's clothing, now claiming to know nothing of the scandals in either non-existent or non-functional flood controls.
Surprise us, O God with your Good News.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelled in the land of gloom a light has shone (Isaiah 9:1).
Your light, O God, has never been extinguished despite the presence of sin and evil; teach us to be like Mary, humbly submitting ourselves to you and your plan to bring forth Jesus Christ our true light into this world; surprise us, Jesus with your grace to say no to evil and be firm in our yes to what is good and just; surprise us of your presence in our hearts, Lord to fill us with courage and trust in you, believing your words will be fulfilled in us too; surprise us, Jesus with your enlightenment to clear all doubts and shadows among us like Mary sharing you with others as our "Prince of Peace" and "Wonder-Counsellor" (Isaiah 9:5).
“Coronation of the Virgin” by Diego Velazquez (ca.1635/1636) from en.wikipedia.org.
O most blessed Virgin Mary, pray that we welcome Jesus Christ daily in our lives in order to share him with everyone like you; as the first of the human race in rank before God's presence, as the Mother of Christ our King, you are our Queen not only as an honor but an example of discipleship in your Son Jesus. Amen.
O Mary Queen of heaven, Pray for us!
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II First Sunday of Advent, Cycle C, 01 December 2024 Jeremiah 33:14-16 ><}}}}*> 1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2 ><}}}}*> Luke 21:25-28, 34-36
Photo by author, Advent 2018.
Blessed happy New Year, everyone! We officially start the new year in the Church on this first Sunday of Advent; that is why the Mass we have every January 1 is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, not New Year as many believe.
This is the reason I insist on everyone to stop greeting “Happy New Year” after December 25 because Christmas is until Epiphany Sunday. And this is the problem with us every Christmas season – we have forgotten its very essence Jesus Christ, replacing Him with all the trimmings of this consumerist and materialistic world we live in.
Photo by author, Advent 2021 at BED Chapel, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.
The first Sunday of Advent is our new year, our new beginning in our journey in life in God through His Son Jesus Christ who had come, would come again, and continues to come daily in our lives. Beginning today until December 16, Advent invites us to focus on Christ’s Second Coming or Parousia at the end of time which nobody knows when except the Father in heaven; from December 17 to 24 and Christmas, we look back to the stories around Christ’s First Coming more than 2000 years ago. Between these two comings of Jesus is His coming in our daily living, in the here and now which St. Bernard of Clairvaux called Christ’s “Third Coming.”
There lies the tension in those three comings of Jesus Christ that have really taken so long that we get impatient or begin to doubt God especially with how world history has unfolded until now with wars as well as natural calamities. Just recently some parts of our country were devastated by a series of powerful typhoons while some parts of the world like Spain had its share of catastrophic flooding that claimed so many lives. Making things worst is how politics has rocked our country this week, trying to undermine our democracy as well as our sense of decency as a nation that had decayed during the past administration.
Photo by author, Dau, Mabalacat, Pampanga, November 2022.
Many are feeling disgusted everywhere in the world with how history is unfolding, wondering if life is going to get any better at all. Some have imitated Pilate in the gospel last Sunday, putting God on trial again, asking Jesus what He had done for all these upheavals and problems going on in history.
Like them, we are also tempted to ask, where is Jesus Christ? Or, the all-powerful and loving God our Father?
The days are coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and Judah. In those days, in that time, I will raise up for David a just shoot; he shall do what is right and just in the land. In those days Judah shall be safe and Jerusalem shall dwell secure, this is what they shall call her: “The Lord our justice” (Jeremiah 33:14-16).
Photo by author, Pulong Sampalok, DRT, Bulacan, 23 November 2024.
The Prophet Jeremiah sets the tone of Advent this Sunday, reawakening our hopes in God amid history’s defiance as seen in the many cycles of sufferings and calamities that continue to shake our lives.
Yes, the “days are coming” and indeed had come when God fulfilled His promise in sending us His Son Jesus Christ who redeemed us from our sins and renewed us in Him with fulfillment in life even while here despite the many trials and tribulations we go through.
The “days are coming” as foretold by Jeremiah long ago and most true these days because the promised Messiah Jesus is now with us, acting in subtle and and complex ways beyond our imaginations, always surprising us with how things turn out than what we believe or expected.
Yes, the “days are coming” – right now – as Jeremiah meant that day after Jerusalem had fallen that amid all the chaos around us, God is among us in Jesus Christ who works among visible realities we cannot see, always coming and going among us unnoticed. That time of great salvation is already among us, being accomplished now by Jesus in silence, in secret.
Hence, the need for us to be vigilant through prayers which Luke emphasized in his gospel account.
Jesus said to his disciples: “But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand. Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise… Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:28, 34-35, 36).
Photo by author, San Fernando, Pampanga, November 2021.
On this new liturgical year designated as “Cycle C”, all our gospel readings on Sundays will be from Luke (Cycle A has Matthew and Cycle B, Mark; John is used partly in cycle B and for great feasts).
Of the four evangelists, Luke is the one who emphasized the importance of prayer in his gospel account wherein he always portrayed Jesus in prayer; hence, not surprisingly, he tells us today that “praying at all times” is being “vigilant at all times” too.
And this we have been told ever since as prayer has always been central in all our teachings. It is in prayer when we are one with God in Jesus. It is in prayer when our senses are heightened that we become open to God’s subtle movements in us and among us.
Everything begins in prayer, both in our personal prayers and as a community like in the Sunday Mass where Christ’s presence is unveiled, where we experience Him most in us and among us and in the world that we are then filled with hope in God despite the darkness and sufferings going on.
Recently, our University joined the annual Red Wednesday celebration of the Church when we remember our Christian brothers and sisters persecuted in various forms in many parts of the world in this modern time. I was overwhelmed at the sight of the great number of our students who joined us, many standing outside our chapel.
What touched me was after the dismissal, some students remained inside the chapel lit in red with flickering candles at the altar, still praying. That for me is the sign of that “little shoot” God promised Jeremiah who would come to bring justice and peace on earth.
Photo courtesy of The Tribune, official publication of Our Lady of Fatima University.
To keep watch in prayer (which we mean as a way of life not just mere recitation of formula prayers) while remaining upright and abounding in love as St. Paul instructed us in the second reading is to be open to Jesus Christ, ready to receive Him without fear amid the tumults in the world when He comes in His final glory.
Yes, the world is still plagued with so many imperfections, even darkness and evil that may dishearten us even make us doubt God in His goodness why these bad things are happening. Advent invites us to reawaken our hope in the salvation that had come, that still comes now, and will surely come in the fullness of the Day of the Lord when Jesus comes again.
Lord Jesus Christ, fill us with fervent hope in You amid the many darkness and sufferings in life; reawaken our hope amid our hopelessness and be surprised with Your loving coming and presence. Amen.
Photo courtesy of The Tribune, official publication of Our Lady of Fatima University.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday in the Thirty-Fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 28 November 2024 Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 21:20-28
Photo by author, Pulong Sampalok, DRT, Bulacan, 22 November 2024.
God our loving Father, have mercy on us your people marching towards You in Jesus Christ; as we approach the closing of this liturgical calendar to usher in the Advent Season, let us see with an upbeat mood the upheavals going on these days especially in our own country.
Keep us strong, Father, in our faith in You and in our firm resolve to persevere in doing what is good and just amid all the destabilizations and noise going on; keep us patient with all the evil still going on, aware always of the sufferings and tribulations we all must endure as part of our witnessing to the Cross of Jesus Christ.
Keep us upbeat in Jesus Christ our Lord, to always live and share in the vision and values of His Gospel despite the many immoralities and profanities by some in power; may we strive to seek and find and follow Jesus always because truth and justice and goodness have the final say in everything in this life - not lies and malice and evil. Amid all the hardships, may we continue to sing the song of the Lamb here on earth so that eventually in the end, we too may be invited to come to the wedding feast of the Lamb there in heaven like what You have shown John in Revelation. Amen.
Photo by author, Pulong Sampalok, DRT, Bulacan, 23 November 2024.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest, 09 September 2024 1 Corinthians 5:1-8 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 6:6-11
God our loving Father, make me a yeast, a leaven for your people, bringing them into a community, a communion.
Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough? Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened. For our Paschal Lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavend bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:6-8).
Many times, we in the Church fail to recognize the importance of corporate witness to the Gospel as one body; many times, we pretend to be blind and deaf and mute in the evil pervading among us, afraid of hurting others feelings, worst, afraid of being unmasked in living a double standard life; straighten our lives, Lord Jesus like that man with a withered hand in the synagogue; straighten our paths to your righteousness as we discern justice and mercy and love whenever there are some of us on the wrong side of the road. Like St. Peter Claver who called himself a "slave of the slaves forever" in his pioneering work among the African slaves in in Colombia, grant us the grace of courage and strength to dare start the impossible of being a yeast, a leaven to the people transforming them into witnesses of your Gospel. Amen.
Quiet Storm by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 26 August 2024
Image from Pinterest.
There are two great documentaries now streaming at Netflix worth watching to cap your long weekend this Monday. I watch Netflix only on Sunday afternoon to evening after my Masses but with so much spare time these long weekend, we tried doing it earlier than usual.
Very often, choosing a movie has always been a struggle with me that always ends up with replays like last Friday of Steven Seagal’s 1988 Above the Law. Aside from old movies, I have always loved old actors that is why when I saw Ed Harris and John Malkovich in the cast of new offerings by Netflix, I immediately jumped on them.
Ed Harris photo from m.imdb.com.
Having spent my early childhood with the weekly series Wild Wild West in the late 60’s, I naturally went first with Ed Harris as narrator of that six-part Western documentary series “Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War”. You can finish it in one sitting with each series less than 50 minutes each. Though he is not like the voice-over talents of History Channel, Harris breathed on life and contemporariness in one of America’s earliest version of today’s so media-hyped stories and personalities. Harris was so cool and suave as narrator yet authoritative even pedagogical in his manner in explaining history and social psychology in presenting the latest facts and insights on the celebrated life of Wyatt Earp complete with photos and reenactments.
From Netflix.com.
Earp and his two brothers served as marshals in the prosperous town of Tombstone in Arizona following the discovery of silver in the area after the American Civil War. Before the coming of gold, it was silver that was propelling the American economy at that time to new heights. However, following the shooting incident between the Earps and a group of bandits led by one Ike Clanton at the O.K. Corral, it eventually led to the so-called Cowboy War.
The series is very engaging with a lot of sprinklings of American politics and businesses, notably the stories behind the growth and influences behind notable banks Wells-Fargo and investment house JP Morgan along with the growing power of newspaper industry in the US that fed on the appetite of so many people eager for news and chismis!
In short, the series delved on the resolution and ending of the Cowboy War that eventually paved the way for the conquest of the American West through business and economics that have cemented it until now as a bastion of the mighty dollar.
John Malkovich from netflix.com.
After that quick marathon, we shifted to our next movie, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. Actually, I had to check again the details of the movie that sounded like a horror one; but, after finding out that one of our all-time favorite John Malkovich was indeed in the cast of the movie based on the first-person account book by Liz Kendall as long-time girlfriend of the “most sadistic sociopath” in crime history, Ted Bundy, we went for it straight!
You know very well the flamboyance of Malkovich in whatever role he had played in his long career. In this docu-film based on that book by Kendall, Malkovich superbly handled Bundy’s trial like the actual judge, Edward Cowart. At the end of the movie, they were splices of actual footages of the Bundy trial that was also the first nationally televised court trial in the US. At first I thought it was part of the “dramatic enhancement” by Malkovich of the hearing for dramatic impact but it turned out that it was exactly how Judge Cowart spoke and behaved in his courtroom. It was so close to the truth except Cowart was portly unlike Malkovich who was nonetheless able to mimic him perfectly in his antics and style.
Netflix displayed a great genius in this film made a few years after their docuseries The Ted Bundy Tapes. When we saw that series, we were so focused on the evil ways of Bundy; in this movie, we are offered with a more personal or human touch in the inhumanity of Bundy through his longtime girlfriend Kendall.
From Netflix.com
And here lies the point of convergence of this two new Netflix movies: both Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile presented the veracity of that expression widely attributed to Edmund Burke that “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph if for good men to do nothing.”
It is always good to see the triumph of good over evil even if sometimes it takes a long while.
In Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War, Harris narrated so well how Earp was so maligned by the vicious liar Clanton who got the whole town behind him for a time. In the movie we are reminded how we always have to sacrifice and endure sufferings to correct evils prevailing even in the society. Most of all, no one can live forever on sin and evil, on violence and war. There will come a time when we just have to cease all violence and retire in silence to let peace have a chance to be won and restored.
In Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, we are cofnronted with the most difficult truth and reality of standing against evil and sin even if the ones perpetrating them is a loved one. Admittedly, I have forgotten how Bundy was finally arrested and linked to the numerous cases of kidnapping, rape and murders that experts believe may run to more than 100 women and young girls.
From Netflix.com.
So interesting in this movie is the fact that it was Kendall, his girlfriend who actually tipped the police about Bundy that eventually led to his arrest. You should see the opening and the closing scenes when Kendall and Bundy finally met anew in prison while he was awaiting execution. That was during those ten years of incarceration while awaiting his execution when Bundy who was superbly played by Zac Efron had maintained innocence to all the crimes until after that visit by Kendall. It was very chilling but praiseworthy of the great courage and strong moral compass of that woman Kendall who did not allow evil to perpetuate even inside her home.
See both movies and examine also your stand for what is true and good, fair and just. And human, most of all.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Feast of St. Mark, Evangelist, 25 April 2024 1 Peter 5:5-14 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 16:15-20
“Judas Betrays Jesus With A Kiss”, painting by Russian Pavel Popov from arthive.com; notice young man fleeing from the scene naked believed to be St. Mark.
"Beloved: Clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble" (1 Peter 5:5).
Your words, O Lord Jesus from St. Peter's first letter are amazing, a most beautiful juxtaposition of being "clothed with humility" on this feast of St. Mark who is believed to have been that naked man fleeing from the scene of Your arrest at Gethsemane: "Now a young man followed him wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body. They seized him, but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked" (Mark 14:51-52).
A painting of St. Mark the Evangelist by French artist Valentin de Boulogne done in 1624-1625 from en.wikipedia.org.
Only St. Mark
has this detail on that scene
because only him could have known
that embarrassing moment
but have boldly kept it because,
before we can ever be
"clothed with humility"
and any other virtue,
we must first be naked
like him,
laying bare not only our body
but most of all,
our heart and soul
with its kind of
superficial discipleship;
very notable too how
St. Mark later ran away too
from Paul and Barnabas
at Perga (Acts 13:13)
for reasons unknown
except his being so young
and immature.
But everything changed, during the Roman persecution when St. Mark remained to work with St. Peter and St. Paul, and after their martyrdom, that was when he ventured into writing the first gospel account that inspired the early Christians to remain faithful in You, Jesus, amid the persecutions.
Clothe us in humility, O Lord, like St. Mark by having the courage to admit our nakedness, to remember and learn from our shameful humiliations in the past because more important than these are Your love and mercy dear Jesus to start anew in You after every failure and sin; most of all, fill us Jesus Christ with Your strength and courage to be Your witnesses proclaiming the Gospel to every creature because in every disciple, what really matters most is being present with You, Lord, and not our absences nor lapses in the past. Amen.
lordmychef.com 