The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday, Third Week in Ordinary Time, Year I, 30 January 2025 Hebrews 10:19-23 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 4:21-25
Photo by author, sunset in Atok, Benguet, 27 December 2024.
Many times, O Lord Jesus, I feel you "hide" from me not because you are avoiding me but simply because you want me to find you. And be surprised because that is how it is really with you and the Father and the Holy Spirit: you want us to experience that sense of awe and wonder of Jacob in Bethel when he dreamt of your stairway to heaven that upon waking up, he cried out in joy, "Truly, the Lord is in this spot, although I did not know it!" (Genesis 28:16)
Photo by author, Mt. Olis Park, Atok, Benguet, 27 December 2024.
Many times in the gospel you have asked those you have healed not to say anything about you to anyone but the more they talk about you, dear Jesus; and this is what you are telling us today, that we cannot hide a shining light or lamp; any good will always shine will always be known and be seen. And that is YOU, Jesus.
When I examine my life, I have experienced many instances when you, Jesus, had broken through the surface after being "hidden" for a long time deep within me; and what a joy until now especially when I am confused, when I feel alone, when I see nothing but darkness, that is actually when you are "hidden", waiting to reveal yourself in the simplest occasions, giving me with "more" even though I already have received so much from you just in finding you!
Grant me the grace, Jesus, "to approach and seek you with a sincere heart and in absolute trust... let me hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope for you are trustworthy as I rouse one another to love and good works" (Hebrews 10:22, 23, 24). Amen.
Photo by author, sunrise at St. Paul Spirituality Center, Pico, La Trinidad, Benguet, 06 January 2025.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday, Memorial of St. Agnes, Virgin & Martyr, 21 January 2025 Hebrews 6:10-20 <'[[[[>< + ><]]]]'> Mark 2:23-28
Photo by author, Nagsasa Cove, San Antonio, Zambales, 19 October 2024.
Brothers and sisters: God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones… This we have as an anchor of the soul, sure and firm, which reaches into the interior behind the veil, where Jesus entered on our behalf as forerunner, becoming high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 6:10,19-20).
What a beautiful passage, so reassuring and timely in this Ordinary Jubilee of 2025 with the theme of Hope; in this world where promises are often made to be broken than kept, thank you dear Jesus in assuring us of your keeping your promises.
Like the anchor that keeps a ship or a boat stable while moored, you O Lord Jesus Christ as our anchor keeps us filled with hope because you never disappoint like most humans.
Forgive us, dear Jesus, when we anchor our hopes in rituals and things like the Pharisees who were so focused on the letters about sabbath, forgetting its essence as a good news, a break, a release and freedom from the burdens of work and time to be attentive to God our very root and life.
Forgive us, dear Jesus, when we are so afraid not to break rules but we break persons, we break promises to love and to be kind with one another; grant us the grace of courage to persevere holding on to your promises in the gospel like St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr who opened herself to your Spirit because you alone, O Christ is able to "reach into the interior behind the veil" of the temple into the very presence of God in Heaven.
Grant us, O Lord, a true sabbath, a break from our harsh judgments of others based simply on incomplete videos and stories. Amen.
Photo by author, Nagsasa Cove, San Antonio, Zambales, 19 October 2024.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Second Sunday in Advent, Cycle C, 08 December 2024 Baruch 5:1-9 ><}}}}*> Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11 ><}}}}*> Luke 3:1-6
Photo courtesy of Mr. Jilson Tio, Archdiocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora De Guia, Ermita, Manila, 28 November 2024.
Two weeks ago I officiated the golden wedding anniversary of a friend’s parents where I said the best wedding homily is actually the couple themselves still much in love, filled with joy after 50 years as husband and wife.
“May forever pa rin,” despite all the celebrity break ups we feast on social media and the many separations happening among some couples these days. How I wish that more young people are invited to wedding anniversaries so they would aspire for lasting relationships too.
Photo by author at the Archdiocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora De Guia, Ermita, Manila, 28 November 2024.
Of course, it is never easy – that is why there is the Sacrament of Marriage where couples pray to God and promise Him to cooperate in His grace so that until death, they would remain together in faith, hope and love that would eventually bring them to eternity.
It is the reality not only of marriage but of life itself. God calls us to a particular vocation or state in life like marriage, priesthood and religious life, or single-blessedness in order to lead us to Him in eternity.
And that is the two-fold meaning of Advent too! We are preparing not only for the first coming of Jesus at Christmas but most of all to His Second Coming at the end of time (parousia). This is the second Sunday in Advent so beautifully presented by Luke.
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert (Luke 3:1-2).
Photo by author, Second Sunday Advent 2022, BED Chapel, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.
First we notice is Luke’s solemn account of how the Son of God Who is eternal entered through our own time that is temporal. If Luke were to write his gospel today, maybe he would simply change the names above into BBM and Sara Duterte, with Pope Francis and Cardinal Advincula representing the Church then spice it with some showbiz tidbits or whatever is trending in social media.
But, here also is the artistry of Luke when he segued to John the Baptist to direct our thoughts to the Second Coming of Christ without losing sight of the present moment, of the here and now.
John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: A voice of one crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God” (Luke 3:3-6).
“St. John the Baptist Preaching in the Wilderness” by German painter Anton Raphael Mengs (1728-1779) from commons.wikimedia.org.
Though John is the main character in today’s gospel and next Sunday, Luke is actually focused on Jesus Christ who had come, would come again, and continues to come to us today. All four evangelists were clear about John as secondary only to Jesus as His precursor.
However, only Luke of the four evangelists cited the Prophet Isaiah extensively regarding John’s unique mission with Christ to stress this future aspect of Advent, skipping only that part “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed” by closing it at “all flesh shall see the salvation of God” in Isaiah 40:3-5.
Luke is teaching us that Advent is looking beyond Christ’s birth but also to His Easter and most of all, to His Second Coming now happening.
For Luke, to be like John in the wilderness is for us to be bold and daring in opening ourselves to God in Jesus Christ amid the turmoils of our time like wars and pandemic, calamities and upheavals. No matter how much pains and disappointments we have had this year that made us doubt God’s love and presence for us in Christ, let us dare anew like John in the wilderness to believe and live out His coming and presence.
In citing Isaiah 40:3-5, Luke is reminding us that we shall all see and experience God’s salvation in Jesus Christ today while awaiting His Parousia. Notice the similarity of Isaiah’s prophecy with that of Baruch’s in the first reading when “every lofty mountain be made low, and that age-old depths and gorges be filled to level ground, that Israel may advance to secure in the glory of God” (Bar. 5:7). Both prophets spoke of the future expectation expressed by John already unfolding in Christ who had come.
Photo by author, Fatima Avenua, Valoenzuela City, December 2023.
A friend texted me last week complaining if Christmas would happen at all in their family after a serious rift with their youngest brother. “Dinaraan-daanan lang po ako Father ng kapatid kong bata, para akong patay na.”
Being the eldest in the family, my friend asked his younger brother to shape up and fix his life (ayusin ang buhay) after taking a third partner. He had dumped his first wife after the birth of their son who turned out to be a special child; then, took a second partner and had a daughter whose godmother, his kumare is now his third partner. My friend had taken upon himself to rear his special nephew and niece while his brother does not care at all.
With that situation at home, my friend told me he could not feel Christmas at all despite the material things they have. After a few hours, I texted him back and told him no one can take away the joy of Christmas because that is Jesus in our hearts. Keep Jesus alive in your heart, I texted him, asking him to continue to still love his wayward brother, never losing that hope in Christ that someday, peace would be restored among them in the family. I ended my texts reminding him that Jesus was born during the darkest night of the year.
That’s the voice of John in the wilderness – when we dare to open to God amid our many pains and sufferings, proclaiming and living out His love in Jesus who had come, continues to come and would come again at the end of time. That’s preparing the way of the Lord even when it is all dark, taking small steps at a time as we could not see the next distant scene. In times like these, let St. Paul’s desire in the second reading be our Advent prayer, “that your love may increase ever more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ” (Phil.1:9-10).
Photo by author, RISE Tower, Valenzuela City, 06 December 2022.
How lovely during this time of Advent when our days are getting shorter, dark earlier than usual because this is also the time sunsets are most awesome. Somewhere out there where the sun sets with skies redolent like embers of the dying day is the voice in the wilderness proclaiming to us Christ’s coming and presence even in the long dark night of waiting.
What do you long or desire most right now in your heart? Reawaken your hopes in Christ Jesus and be ready to be surprised as He shall straighten your path soon especially with your loved ones. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday in the First Week of Advent, St. Francis Xavier, 03 December 2024 Isaiah 11:1-10 <'[[[[>< + ><]]]]'> Luke 10:21-24
Photo by author, Bgy. Dau, Mabalacat, Pampanga, 5:36 PM, 28 November 2022.
How lovely indeed
are your words this Season
of Advent, O Lord our God
as we listen to Prophet Isaiah's
colorful prophecies about peace
when preys and predators live
in harmony:
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion shall browse together, with a little child to guide them. The cow and the bear shall b e neighbors, together their young shall rest; the lion shall eat hay like ox. The baby shall play by the cobra’s den, and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair (Isaiah 11:6-8).
Right now, many of us are in darkness, some are about to give up in life, losing hope, frustrated and disappointed in themselves, in their work, and worst, in their relationships; help us imagine this amazing scene from Isaiah's prophecy heralding the Christ's advent.
Fill us with hope, loving Father so we may cooperate with your grace to accomplish Your "mission impossible" like St. Francis Xavier who gloriously accomplished "mission impossible" in the Far East as he took to heart the final words of St. Ignatius his superior, "Go set all in fire."
Photo by author, Bgy. Dau, Mabalacat, Pampanga, 5:40 PM, 28 November 2022.
Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Prince of Peace who had come, would come again, and continues to come to us daily in our lives: open our eyes, teach us to trust in You like little children; give us that childlike attitude of believing and hoping "mission impossible" is possible, that there's nothing we cannot accomplish for as long as we are in You; reawaken our hopes in You, Jesus, despite the defiance of history and other people in your plans of peace and joy, of fulfillment and life right here, right now. Amen.
Photo by author, Bgy. Dau, Mabalacat, Pampanga, 28 November 2022.
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 Tuesday, Memorial of Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin & Doctor of Church, 01 October 2024 Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23 <*[[[[>< +. ><]]]]*> Luke 9:51-56
Photo by author, 2018.
Thank you, dear God our loving Father for the month of October! Most of all, thank you for sending us Jesus Christ your Son and thus "opened your Kingdom to those who are humble and to little ones" like St. Therese of the Child Jesus whose memorial we celebrate today.
Lead us to follow trustingly in the little way of St. Therese of the Child Jesus especially in bearing patiently filled with hope life's many sufferings like Job.
Job opened his mouth and cursed his day. Job spoke out and said: Why is light given to the toilers, and life to the bitter in spirit? they wait for death and it comes not; they search for it rather than for hidden treasures, Rejoice in it exultingly, and are glad when they reache the grave: Those whose path is hidden from them, and whom God has hemmed in! (Job 3:1-2, 20-23)
Fill us too with true hope, dear Jesus like You, Job and St. Therese, a hope that trusts in God even if things are sure to get worst, even end in death; like You, Jesus, may we resolutely determine to journey to Jerusalem even when we know it could lead to our passion and death; help us live in hope like St. Therese that despite her sickness, she did everything filled with love for the Church missionaries; may our pains in life like St. Therese and Job have both experienced help us understand the pain of others so that we may bring healing compassion to their situation; make us realize that a world totally free of pain can actually become a place of total selfishness and self-indulgence because it is through pains we truly love and hope and become holy and saint. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday in the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 18 September 2024 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13 <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> Luke 7:31-35
Photo by author, 20 August 2024.
What a lovely Wednesday today, O God our merciful Father! Thank you for this wonderful moment, thank you for your presence, thank you for the gift of life. Thank you for the love.
St. Paul tells us today that love is the greatest of all your gifts, O God because no amount of goodness and giftedness will ever be worthy without love. And what is love?
Love is. That is, being present always. Never absent.
Love happens in the present moment, never in the past nor the future.
That is why love is patient, love is kind, love is not jealous, love is not pompous, love is not inflated, love is not rude, love is not self-interested, love is not quick-tempered, love does not brood over injury, love does not rejoice over wrongdoing, love rejoices with the truth, love bears all things, love believes all things, love hopes all things, love endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:4-7) because precisely, love is always in present tense.
Jesus said to the crowds: “Then to what shall I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are the children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance. We sang a dirge, but you did not weep'” (Luke 7:31-32).
Forgive us, dear Jesus for being loveless, always missing every moment to love, missing every chance to be kind to others, for desiring and having always the best intentions but never having even the the smallest kind deeds for anyone; let us live in every present moment, that thin line between here and now called present which is the other word for gift.
Let us live, O Lord, in love, finding and cherishing the gift of every presence right here, right now. By being a gift too to others in You. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday in the Eighteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 07 August 2024 Jeremiah 31:1-7 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 15:21-28
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Yes, a day will come when the watchmen will call out on Mount Ephraim: “Rise up, let us go to Zion, to the Lord, our God.” For thus says the Lord: Shout with joy for Jacob, exult at the head of the nations; proclaim your praise and say: The Lord has delivered his people, the remnant of Israel (Jeremiah 31:6-7).
How refreshing are your words today, God our loving Father; so upbeat with hope for the divided nation of Judah and Israel to finally be one just like us today: so divided recently with all the mockery and sacrilege in the Paris Olympics only to be united by Carlos Yulo's recent harvest of two gold medals; what a beautiful lesson in faith in You that is also hope itself; from being the least supported and known sport in the country, Yulo remained faithful filled with hope in You while persevering in gymnastics; like Yulo and Jeremiah's command, let us shout with joy to You, proclaiming your redemption that literally means "Hosanna" in Hebrew, the very shouts of joy when Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.
She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is uyour faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour (Matthew 15:27-28).
Like that Canaanite woman who begged Jesus, even bantered with Him about dogs and puppies, bread and crumbs for mercy and healing to her sick daughter, help us realize that faith is hope; that hope is more than positive thinking of how things would get better but could even get worse yet still believe in God!
Thank you Jesus for always coming to "pagan" territories like Tyre and Sidon; keep our faith and hope burning to await You, to recognize You, to meet You coming in the midst of our many darkness and brokenness. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday, Memorial of St. Irenaeus, Bishop & Martyr, 28 June 2024 2 Kings 25:1-12 <'[[[[>< + ><]]]]'> Matthew 8:1-4
It is the end of another week of work and studies for most of us, God our loving Father, but for some, it is like the end of everything for them like your people at Judah and Jerusalem:
In the tenth month of the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, king od Babylon, and his whole army advanced against Jerusalem, encamped around it and built siege walls on every side. On the ninth day of the fourth month, when famine had gripped the city, and the people had no more bread, the city walls were breached. The king was therefore arrested and brought to Riblah to the king of Babylon, who pronounced sentence on him. He had Zedekiah’;s sons slain before his eyes. He then blinded Zedekiah, bound him with fetters, and had him brought to Babylon (2 Kings 25:1, 3, 6-7).
Many times, when life becomes so difficult even so terrible for us, all we ask, O God, are simple words and acts of encouragement; send us someone who is like Jesus your Son, our Lord and Savior who, upon meeting a leper, told him, "I will do it. Be made clean" (Matthew 8:3).
Like Jesus, may we stay and remain even for a few minutes with those so burdened in life; when the leper approached him, Jesus did not hide nor run but stayed to let the leper feel He was with him; many times, we forget our mere presence can be so encouraging; forgive us for abandoning and turning away from those who come to us even for company and warmth.
Like Jesus, even if we do not have the power to heal and cleanse anyone of sickness, grant us the gift of words that encourage others to hold on in faith, to keep hoping, and most of all, to believe in love when all is dark because like Jesus, we may tell them how much we desire their well-being. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday in the Fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 30 January 2024 2 Samuel 18:9-10, 14, 24-25, 30-19:3 ><}}}}*> + <*{{{{>< Mark 5:21-43
Photo by author, 19 January 2024, Our Lady of Fatima University-Sta. Rosa, Laguna Campus.
Today, O God, I join the psalmist in his prayer to you: "Incline your ear, O Lord; answer me, for I am afflicted and poor. Have mercy on me, O Lord, for to you I call all the day. Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul" (Psalm 86:1, 3-4).
Gladden our hearts, gladden our souls, Father in Jesus Christ your Son; many mothers are now grieving over their lost sons or daughters to sickness and accidents; like David in the first reading, it does not matter what kind of a son or a daughter one's children may have been; their death is always a terrible loss, a most unfair and unkind one when parents should have gone first ahead of children.
You alone, Lord Jesus Christ, can comfort and gladden our souls amid our many griefs and miseries; you alone, Jesus, can stop our internal bleeding for the many pains and hurts within us we silently endure like that woman in today's gospel afflicted with hemorrhages for 12 years; raise us up, Jesus, from the pits of our agonies and slow deaths, bring back to life those losing zest of living because of betrayals and infidelities, those in countless despair of failures and frustrations.
Dear Jesus, we pray for those who hide all their pains and sufferings as they forge on daily in life, keeping the faith in you as they try to make ends meet and most especially struggling to fulfill their promises of life and brighter future for their loved ones gladly awaiting their coming home. Amen.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, an orange-bellied flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma) somewhere in the Visayas, December 2023.
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