Advent is patient transformation to joy

Lord My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Third Sunday in Advent-A (Gaudete Sunday), 14 December 2025
Isaiah 35:1-6, 10 ><}}}}*> James 5:7-10 ><}}}}*> Matthew 11:2-11

Our churches are bursting in hues of pink this Third Sunday of Advent rejoicing not only in the fast approaching Christmas but most especially in the Lord’s Second Coming already happening in our midst.

Like John the Baptist in today’s gospel who was imprisoned at the time, we could feel in our own waiting for Jesus his saving presence in the many good things happening within us and around us.

When John the Baptist heard in prison of the works of the Christ, he sent his disciples to Jesus with the question, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” Jesus said to them in reply, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them” (Matthew 11:2-5).

Remember our reflection last Sunday of John’s preaching in the desert of Jordan signifying our own desert where amid the dryness and emptiness Jesus comes to us, Jesus is most present with us and in us. That is because more than an imagery of nothingness and death, the desert signifies too our intimacy with God. Many times in life, God brings us or allows us to get lost in our own desert to experience his intimacy with us, his immense love for us because when we are sufficient and strong, we rarely feel him nor even desire him. But, when we are like in a desert with nothing, that is when we long for God, and most especially feel him present.

That is why every prophet in the Bible including our Lord Jesus Christ frequented the desert and wilderness to show their intimacy and communion with God. The desert is thus transformed into a greenery filled with life like what Isaiah prophesied in the first reading today:

The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song. The glory of Lebanon will be given them, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God… Then will the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; then will the lame leap like a stag, then the tongue of the dumb will sing (Isaiah 35:1-2, 5-6).

See now the transformations found in our readings: in the last two Sundays we heard Isaiah speaking of the dried and barren desert but today he spoke of its transformation into a lush and verdant stretch of land; in the gospel we find John still in the desert, firm and unchanging in his preaching though his situation had changed a lot.

Last Sunday John was freely proclaiming the coming of the Christ in the desert as he sternly warned the Pharisees and Sadducees of their judgment; this Sunday, John was still in the desert but imprisoned awaiting death when he reproached King Herod in taking his brother Philip’s wife Herodias. But despite that clear danger daily hanging on his head, John was not disturbed at all as he patiently awaited the coming of the Messiah that he sent emissaries to Jesus to ask if he is already the Christ.

Here we find something so human in John the Baptist, so much like us when we sort of doubt ourselves not because we lack faith but simply we just want to be sure of what we are hearing, what we have seen, of what God is really doing.

Let it be clear: like John, most often we doubt ourselves not really God when things happen not according to our plans or expectations. Inasmuch as life is a mystery, God is more mysterious! Most of the time, we cannot understand his ways because he moves so differently, even unpredictably from what we know and expect.

Perhaps, John had a different scenario in his mind about the arrival of the Messiah like in the Old Testament tradition of judgment day, of action-packed events punishing evil people. Recall how called the Pharisees and Sadducees “You brood of vipers…Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire (Mt.3:10).

But something totally different was happening at that time as he heard while in prison – many people and their lives were being transformed. John realized something deeper than expected was going on in Judea and Galilee. And when his emissaries relayed to him the reply of Jesus, John realized that indeed the Christ he was proclaiming had arrived in Jesus. As a prophet well-versed with the scriptures, John found Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophecy by Isaiah when the blind can see, the lame can walk, dead are raised and the good news proclaimed to the poor.

It must have been a Nunc Dimittis experience of Simeon for John that soon enough, he died a martyr ahead of his Lord and Master Jesus Christ. John indeed prepared the way of the Lord in his birth and in his death, showing us the importance of patience in awaiting Christ and in experiencing the joy in his coming.

Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early an the late rains. You too must be patient. Make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand (James 5:7-8).

Before the COVID pandemic, my brother and I used to rest at Camp John Hay in Baguio where he would buy in one of the shops there a line of local and organic perfumes. His favorite scent was called “Patience” but one time when we went there, it had ran out of stock that he said wryly, “maski ba naman pabango na patience, wala na rin?”

So true! Patience seems to have been almost extinct in this age of instants. Nobody wants to be patient anymore especially if one can have almost everything instantly. Even during the time of the early church, people have been impatient in life that St. James wrote them on the importance of patience in our journey of faith, in awaiting the Lord’s return.

From the Latin word patior that means to suffer, patience is a kind of suffering, of bearing the pain of waiting especially over a long period of time that we doubt if it is still worth the waiting at all. But we fail to “see” or realize as St. James pointed out like the farmer that waiting is never passive nor empty; there is always something wonderful happening that we do not see like the germination, growth and blooming of crops and plants. The more patient we are, the more suffering in waiting, the greater always the joy that comes when our waiting is finally fulfilled!

Advent teaches us this third Sunday that we need to be patient for waiting itself is a holy ground where we experience God’s coming and intimacy. Though patience tests our limits, it transforms us too!

Think of the stalactites and stalagmites in caves formed millions of years by drops of water. Or the great natural wonders of earth that took thousands of years of formation, transformation. Most of all, our very selves. Who we are and what we are today are long years of patient efforts to be healthy or successful or simply be alive. And that’s a great reason to rejoice.

Patience is so difficult to practice like in our daily experiences of horrendous traffic everywhere but with patience, we arrive at our destination. Patience transforms us into better persons and disciples of Jesus, enabling us to rejoice no matter what is the situation we are into. It is in the midst of sufferings and waiting, of patience and impatience that Jesus calls us to experience his silent and steady presence resting upon us like the rains every farmer is so familiar with. Our joy is doubled, becoming a rejoicing when we practice patience in our endeavors, in life itself.

Let me end this reflection with a quotation I memorized as a child on the wall of our former family dentist’s office in Meycauayan, Bulacan that said:

Time is fast for people who rush;
time is slow for people who wait;
time is not for people who love.

The most loving persons are also the most patient ones. Always. And first among them is Jesus Christ who patiently awaits us to return to him so we can experience his joy. Amen. Have a joyful week ahead!

Immaculate Conception, Intimacy of God

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, 08 December 2025
Genesis 3:9-15, 20 ><}}}}*> Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 ><}}}}*> Luke 1:26-38

*“Cestello Annunciation” by Botticelli painted in 1490; from en.wikipedia.org.*

We praise and thank God today on this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary that formally kicked off the process of the fulfillment of his promised salvation in Jesus born by the Virgin Mother.

According to our official Church teaching called dogma, Mary was conceived by her mother St. Anne without any stain of original sin through the merits of Jesus Christ our Savior. Mary has to be pure and clean because she would bear the Son of God who is perfect and spotless.

God chose Mary to be the Mother of Jesus not because of her having any special traits but purely out of God’s goodness “who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens” (Eph.1:3).

Hence, this feast reminds us too to imitate the Blessed Virgin in saying “yes” to God’s invitation to cooperate in his wonderful plans of bringing Jesus into this world so darkened by sin that has left us broken and fragmented from each other. Rejoice, therefore, because everyday, God sends us his angel to greet us with “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you” (Lk.1:26), inviting us into an intimacy with him like Mary.

*Photo by author, left side of the facade of the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, Holy Land, May 2019.*

Intimacy is more than being close with another; it is an expression of love that is willing to sacrifice, to suffer and get hurt for the sake of the beloved.

God was the first to express his intimacy with us not just by expressing his immense love for us in words by the prophets in the Old Testament but by sending us his Son Jesus Christ who became human like us in everything except sin. Actually, God does not need to become human like us to save us but he chose to be one of us because he loves us so much. As an expression of his intimacy and solidarity with us, Jesus suffered and died on the Cross while going through every pain and hurt we go through in life like grief and sadness in losing a friend, betrayal by a friend, abandonment by friends, no to mention being terrified, going hungry and thirsty. Jesus became like us so that we may become like God – intimately loving him through others.

Actually, God does not need us but he chose to love us, to be with us, to be intimate with us because he loves us so much. God remains God even without us. When we do not pray, when we do not go to Mass on Sundays, when we are bad and not good, God is still God. It is us humans who are lessened when we turn away from from God.

That’s the intimacy of God with us.

How about us, are we willing to be intimate with God in Jesus Christ?

Sadly, many people “create” and “force” intimacy which is a grace, a gift of God freely given to everyone. Like friendship, we cannot force intimacy into someone not meant to be. And like friendship too, intimacy begins in Christ, blooms in Christ.

Photo by author, chapel beneath the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth; see those pilgrims praying behind iron grills at the back of the sanctuary which is the site where the Angel announced to Mary the birth of Jesus Christ.

Underneath the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth is a chapel near the very site where the angel is believed to have appeared to Mary to announce the coming of the Savior. At the back of the sanctuary of this chapel is that holy site of the Annunciation enclosed by iron grills with an altar table at the center with the declaration in Latin, Verbum Caro Hic Factum Est (The Word became flesh here).

Mary’s intimacy with God began long before the Annunciation to her by the Angel cultivated in her prayer life. Every time I pray this scene of the Annunciation, I always imagine Mary deeply absorbed in prayer. Most likely, she must be praying about her coming wedding to Joseph. Luke and Matthew were both consistent about their status as being “betrothed to each other” when God announced through the Angel the birth of the Christ.

*Photo by author, close up of the* Annunciation site beneath the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth; written on the altar table that says in Latin, “The Word became flesh here.”

Imagine the excitement and joy of two faithful Jews getting married soon when suddenly the Angel appeared to them on separate occasions and diverse situations to announce God’s plan of sending his own Son Jesus Christ for the salvation of the world?

It must have been most painful to both Mary and Joseph but as being truly faithful and loving of God, they both agreed to the Divine plan! And that is the great sign of their immense love for God – eventually for each other. Moreover, in saying yes to God, both Mary and Joseph showed the kind of intimacy they have with the Divine.

Let us focus on the intimacy of Mary with God on this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception found in our gospel account of the Annunciation.

*Photo by Rev. Fr. Gerry Pascual of Iba, Zambales at Santuario di Greccio, Rieti, Italy in 2019.*

Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you ahve found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus (Luke 1:30-31).

Notice that in many scenes and prayers about the Blessed Virgin Mary, we find the prominence of her “womb” like here in the Annunciation and when Elizabeth praised her during her Visitation as “blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Lk.1:42).

In Hebrew, the word for womb is “racham, rachamin” which is their word too for “mercy” because for them, God’s mercy comes from his innermost being. Hence, whenever the Jews speak of mercy of God, they point their fingers downward into the womb or uterus and moves it upward to the heart to indicate the flow of mercy of God from his innermost being expressed in love which is he’s very being and core.

This is the reason the Church Fathers translated mercy into “misericordia” from the Latin verb to move or to stir – “misereor” – and word for heart “cor” that literally means “to move or to stir one’s heart”. It is more than a feeling like compassion; mercy is deeper as it encompasses one’s being leading to intimacy that is a communion or oneness with others which is also intimacy.

*Photo by author, Church of the Visitation, Ein-Karem, Israel, May 2017.*

Where there is love, there is always intimacy with the lover willing to bear all pains and hurts for the beloved. And vice versa. Like Jesus. Then Mary who was willing to sacrifice her wedding and marriage to Joseph by being the Mother of the Son of God.

But why? Because we have experienced too that true joy comes only when there is giving of self, when there is willingness to let go and suffer. At the Last Supper, Jesus described joy as like a mother in the pangs of childbirth when she goes through a lot of pains and worries and fears almost like dying but once the baby is delivered, joy happens because she had brought forth a new life into the world.

True joy is having the firm belief that no matter what happens even in the worst scenarios, God would never leave nor forsake us. Joy happens when we find new life, new directions because there is another person willing to remain with us, assuring us we are never alone. That again is intimacy when you feel not alone especially in the most trying times.

Without intimacy with God and another person, there can be no true joy because no one would dare to take risks in this life like mothers. This is what modern women are missing when they see childbearing more as a chore or a burden or a suffering they can always avoid than self-giving borne out of love which happens in the context of an intimacy. No wonder too that sex has been so trivialized, reduced to an activity and act instead of as a gift of self because there is no more responsibility and intimacy. We cannot have lasting and meaningful relationships without intimacy.

On this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, we are reminded of God’s mercy and intimacy with us, of his loving relationship with us that continues in Christ Jesus with Mary.

Let us nurture this beautiful relationship with God that flows and bears fruit in our relationships with one another.

Like Mary, may we finally say yes to God into an intimate relationship with him through our selflessness. Like Mary, we are blessed and full of grace. The joy awaiting far outweighs the pains and sufferings we shall go through in our gift of self in our relationships. Have no fear for Jesus had suffered first before us so that we can love and be intimate like him. Amen. Have a blessed week.

Praying for joy

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Sixth Week of Easter, 30 May 2025
Acts 18:9-18     <*((((><  +  ><))))*>     John 16:20-23

*Photo by author, Cabo da Roca, Pundaquit, San Antonio, Zambales, 14 May 2025.*

In a few days you are
going to "leave" us, Jesus;
this Sunday is your Ascension,
your physical departure from us
and you described so well our situation:

Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy. When a woman is in labor, as she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy that a child has been born into the world. So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you. On that day you will not question me about anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you” (John 16:20-23).

What has been "born"
in me in your Rising from the dead?
What is that joy like a woman
in the pangs of childbirth
suddenly becoming a joy so
incomparable?

Oh, it is that joy of having you
in my heart, Jesus:
I have found joy more in my heart
than outside of me;
your joy is that assurance
you are with me always
no matter what,
as certain as the rising and
the setting of the sun,
as lovely as the blooming of flowers,
soothing like the hush of the wind
or the gushing of water in a river
or the rush of the waves to
the shore.

Keep that joy in my heart,
Jesus that no one can take away;
a joy in my heart that even
if I do not receive the things
I ask in prayer,
I still believe,
I still hope,
I still rejoice
in you.

Sorry, Jesus,
I still question you on anything
despite that joy of knowing you,
 of having you
but many times I wonder
why all the pains and sufferings
with me and those close to me;
there are times,
Lord that I lose my heart
that I could not feel that joy of you
when you don't answer
my prayers.

But, 
to still keep on praying
even if it not answered at all
is already pure joy in you,
Jesus!

Like peace,
true joy is so difficult
and elusive when not found
in you, Jesus
that we always have to wait
for you,
feel you,
suffer and cry with you
and sometimes die in you
so that joy shall be
born in us
again
and again
and again.
Amen.

Praying to make our joy complete

Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday in the Fifth Week of Easter, 23 May 2025
Acts 15:7-21     <*((((><  +  ><))))*>     John 15:9-11

*Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2025.*

Make my joy complete,
Lord Jesus,
let your joy be in me
(John 15:11)!

True joy comes only
in union with the Father
like you, dear Jesus;
in a world that had shrunk
into one global village
due to modern technology
that has spawned so many forms
and kinds of connections among peoples,
we are not yet filled with joy, Lord;
in fact, the more we have been
separated than ever because
our "connections" are fleeting,
empty of any love at all;
true connections in you,
with you Jesus lead to joy
as we have seen in the experience
of the early Church:

After much debate had taken place, Peter got up and said to the Apostles and the presbyters… “Why, then, are you now putting God to the test by placing on the shoulders of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they” (Acts 15:7, 10-11).

When we keep your commandments,
then we remain in your love, Jesus;
that's the only basis and most essential
in every connection and relationship
because when there is love even if in
the midst of pain and suffering,
there is always joy which is more
than a feeling but an assurance that
no matter what, there is God always
on our side, loving us, blessing us
as Peter explained in the Council of Jerusalem;
grant us the grace to remain in your love,
Jesus, to examine in what areas of our life
we remain and grow in your love.
Amen.

*Photo by author, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, 28 March 2025.*

Advent is the joy of our union in the Lord

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Third Sunday in Advent (Gaudete Sunday), Cycle C, 15 December 2024
Zephaniah 3:14-18 ><}}}}*> Philippians 4:4-7 ><}}}}*> Luke 3:10-18

*Photo by author, Gaudete Sunday, Advent 2018.*

Our altars are bursting in shades of pink this third Sunday in Advent known as Gaudete Sunday from the entrance antiphon in Latin of today’s Mass meaning “Rejoice in the Lord”.

To rejoice means to intensify joy which is a world apart from “happiness” many have mistaken as synonym for joy and rejoicing. Happiness is fleeting and superficial, dependent on the outside “stimulus” that makes us happy while joy comes from within one’s heart.

Joy is that feeling of certainty that no matter what happens to us, God would never forsake us, leading us to serenity and peace. That is why one can still rejoice and be joyful even in pain and sufferings like the elderly, the sick, or those struck with tragedy and failures. We can only rejoice when we have that deep faith in God, filled with hope that even if things get worst, our final salvation is in Jesus Christ who had come, would come again, and continues to come to us.

*Photo by author, Advent 2021, BED Chapel, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.*

Joy and salvation always come together as expressed by the Prophet Zephaniah in the first reading today which is fulfilled in Jesus Christ who renewed us all in the love of God our Father.

Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has removed the judgment against you, as he turned away your enemies… The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; he will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love (Zephaniah 3:14-15, 17).

True rejoicing can only happen in Jesus our Savior as St. Paul insisted in our second reading today, “Brothers and sisters: Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4).

In His sermon on the mount about the beatitudes, Jesus taught us that true blessedness that leads to joy is not in having everything but in being empty and poor for God, being free from the trappings of this material world. Just ask those above 50 years old today: we have less of material things when growing up but we have so much fun so unlike these days of so many gadgets and things when suicides and mental cases are on the rise. People may be happy today but not joyful.

*With our Campus Ministry members after our Advent Recollection, 12 December 2024, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, RISE Tower, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.*

At His Last Supper as well as after Easter in His appearances to His disciples, Jesus assured us of joy and peace if we remain in Him by keeping His commandments especially the celebration of the Eucharist until He comes again. But, in a recent Christmas party I attended, a parlor game surprised me when the host asked participants to “bring him” the first thing we look for upon waking up when everybody rushed to him bringing their cellphones!

I thought the answer were eye glasses which I first look for upon waking up to check the time. As a result, I made an informal survey when I took the elevator and during our Mass at the university when I asked the students, “what is the first thing you look for upon waking up?”

And, cellphone again was their unanimous answer which I find very alarming. Is the cellphone the new god of our modern time, replacing not only Jesus but even ourselves! It has slowly robbed us of our true joy, often caused many of our sorrows and breakdown of relationships.

We rejoice because of Jesus Christ and in our union in Him, we become one with others in whom we experience joy and rejoicing too.

Now we go to another dimension of joy and rejoicing – its personal and relational aspect. Have you experienced there are times we find it difficult to rejoice with others having fun or enjoying something while on the other hand, we are easily moved to sympathize with anyone crying or feeling api and forlorn even if we do not know them?

Is it not ironic we easily unite with strangers in sadness but not in joy? I think that perhaps, God designed us to sympathize with anyone in pain because there is a thread that connects and binds us together in times of sorrow. It is a lot different with rejoicing which presupposes a relationship, a sort of oneness to experience the others’ joy. Joy is never solitary unlike sadness that is often kept inside by the person. Joy to be really joyful has to be made known. That is why we can easily share in the joy of others when we know them. We turn sarcastic even jealous when we find others we do not know rejoicing simply because we are not part of them nor of their joys.

*Photo by author, Gaudete Sunday, Advent 201*9.

Rejoicing is not about what we or anyone can do but all about relationships as Luke shows us in his account on John’s baptism at Jordan that is so upbeat that we too could feel the rejoicing of the people in John’s coming and preaching that some of them thought John was the Messiah. The people felt a deep sense of belonging, of relating and knowing that they asked John what they must do to continue rejoicing!

The crowds asked John the Baptist, “What should we do?” Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” Soldiers also asked him, “And what is it that we should do?” Now the people were filled with expectation, nd all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ… Exhorting them in many other ways, he preached good news to the people (Luke 3:10, 12, 14, 15, 18).

In telling us how John answered the queries of the people on what they must do to experience the coming of the Messiah, Luke teaches us that God is not asking great things from us but only simple acts of charity and mercy for one another like being kind and loving because we are already related in Him in the first place. Hence, we all can rejoice in Christ!

Here is our common misconception that if we do what is good and right, then we shall be filled with joy. Wrong. We are already filled with joy and we just have to intensify that into rejoicing because we are already God’s beloved children in baptism. When we live out our status as beloved children of God in Christ, everything follows.

Don’t you feel rejoicing just before communion, praying, “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you under my roof but only say the word and I shall be healed”?

Imagine that immense love of God in Christ for us when nobody among us even the priest officiating the Mass is worthy to receive Jesus and yet, He came and made it a reality because He loves us so much! All we have to do is be sorry for our sins, reform our lives, apologize to those we have wronged, forgive those who have sinned against us… it is God who does everything for us in Jesus Christ. We do only so little but sadly, we could not even do the little things so well like coming on time for the Mass every Sunday, much less be silent to pray and listen to Jesus coming to us in Holy Communion because we are so busy conversing with those beside us or checking our cellphones.

This third Sunday in Advent, Jesus invites us to imitate John the Baptist His precursor who “preached good news to the people” with his warm and joyful presence. Spread the joy of Jesus by being kind and warm to others especially those in pain, those alone, those who are lost. After all, we are all one in Christ who is our joy and salvation. Amen.

Grace & joy, together. Always.

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday in the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 19 September 2024
1 Corinthians 15:1-11 ><))))*> + <*((((>< Luke 7:36-50

*Photo by author, St. Scholastica Spirtuality Center, Tagaytay City, 21 August 2024.*

Praise and glory
to you, God our loving Father!
Thank you for your unending
gifts of grace for us
despite our many sins
and our being undeserving.

Truly like St. Paul,
we too feel so small, 
"the least" for our so many sins
yet you never denied us with
that immense grace of 
mercy and forgiveness,
redemption and new life in
Christ Jesus our Lord
that we so often forget.

Let us affirm 
and be grateful
by cultivating this great grace
you have given us in Jesus
be who we are in your sight,
never making your grace "ineffective"
like the Pharisees in today's gospel 
who could not stand 
the sight of Jesus 
interacting with a sinful woman,
of Jesus speaking to a sinner,
of Jesus forgiving so great a sin.

May we keep in our
heart and mind your tremendous
gift of grace to be near you,
to be like you,
to be filled with you
by living out your grace
in grateful witnessing 
of loving and joyful service 
to others.

Help us remember 
that like in the Annunciation
to Mary, rejoicing and grace
are always together:
from the Greek words 
charis for grace and
chara for rejoicing,
rejoicing and joy
are clearest signs of
grace anywhere 
like that woman
who washed 
and anointed
the Lord's feet.
Amen.

Easter is getting real, not “ghosting”

The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Third Sunday in Easter-B, 14 April 2024
Acts 3:13-15, 17-19 ><}}}}*> 1 John 2:1-5 ><}}}}*> Luke 24:35-48

*Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, 27 March 2024 at Katmon Nature Sanctuary & Beach Resort, Infanta, Quezon.*

More than ten years ago, there used to be a billboard at the C3-Banaue area in Quezon City that said, “True love is like ghosts, which everybody talks about and only a few have seen.”

I googled the saying and found it was from French moralist Francoise de la Rochefoucauld (1613-1680). Nonetheless, we remembered that billboard because in our gospel today, we have heard how the Apostles thought upon seeing the Risen Lord that He was a ghost!

While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones and you can see I have.”
Luke 24:36-39

*“The Road to Emmaus” painting by American Daniel Bonnell from fineartamerica.com.*

This is the last Sunday we shall hear a story of the Risen Lord’s appearance to His disciples; beginning next Sunday, our gospels will be the accounts of Jesus Christ’s discourses at their Last Supper.

It is not really important to count how many times the Risen Lord had appeared to His disciples who in the first place never bothered themselves with it. John explained it last Sunday why only a few of these were written so that we may believe and have life in Him (Jn.20:31). There are two things we find always in these few Resurrection stories that convince us the Lord is risen.

First, there is always the intensity we feel in the Resurrection stories we have. Even though there is no account of how it happened, we could feel in the whole New Testament that it actually happened. It is historical but beyond the physical and ordinary. So real yet surreal. That is why initially, there is the incredulity not only among the disciples but even among us at this time. As we say in Filipino, “hindi makapaniwala” as opposed to “hindi maniwala” because Jesus Christ’s Resurrection opened new possibilities in our human existence that only faith in Him can explain though not fully. It is when all we can say in Filipino is “a…basta!”

From this intensity of His Resurrection, there is always that movement to gather together as a community of the risen Lord’s disciples. Easter is always in the context and setting of a community. See how Jesus would always tell or lead His disciples to gather together as a community, always appearing to them when there are at least two of them gathered like Clopas and companion on the way to Emmaus on the evening of Easter. And we see its effect – once they recognized Jesus at His breaking of bread, they both hurried back to Jerusalem to join the other disciples to share the good news!

That’s the beauty and mystery of Easter. It is so intense, so true we can feel and experience, always leading us to gather together as a community, as a family. It is never selfish nor personal. Do we have the same intensity today as individuals and as a community especially in our Sunday Masses?

*From Facebook, 04 April 2021: “There is an urgency to announce the Joy, the joy of the Risen Lord.”*

Today’s gospel scene is the continuation of that Emmaus story. While Clopas and companion were telling the disciples their experience, Jesus suddenly came into their room and again, they were startled and terrified.

But Luke added that one word “ghost” that was used twice in this scene: first in v.37, “But they were starteld and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost” and in v. 39 when Jesus read His disciples’ minds, telling them to “Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.”

Sorry for the long introduction as I wish to direct our attention to that word ghost.

When we were growing up, there was a cartoon show on TV called “Casper the friendly ghost.” In Filipino, we always refer to ghost as multo, something scary because like the aswang, they look terrible and would always harm people. That is why the Church later on changed the name Holy Ghost to Holy Spirit because of the very negative connotation of the word ghost.

These days, the young people are using again the word ghost, turning it into a verb form that means so negative: ghosting as in “iniwan sa ere”. At first, I thought to be ghosted is the equivalent of what we used to say “na-Indian” when a date or someone stood you up in a meeting or coming together.

But ghosting is more than just not appearing nor coming to a meeting or get together. It is almost like betrayal or infidelity. Precisely what the youth say, to be left hanging on air not knowing at all what is next. Very disappointing. Most of all, painful as it hurts us deeply when ghosted. The Filipino expression says it all completely, iniwan sa ere which is worst than the English expression “dropped like a hot potato”. To be ghosted is to be betrayed, to be taken for granted, to be discarded like a thing. It is utter lack of respect to another person. Worst, it is lack of life fulln of pessimism and indifference to life itself.

*Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, 18 March 2024.*

Jesus Christ is not a ghost. Had never and would never ever ghost us because He is faithful, truly alive and truly present with us especially in our darkest and emptiest moments in life. Many times, we do not see nor recognize Him because we are so focused at how we were ghosted especially by loved ones.

In the first reading, we heard Peter’s second discourse on Pentecost Sunday about the Resurrection of Jesus as the summit of everything that was written in the Old Testament, the fulfillment of salvation history. But at the same time, he was telling the people of how they have ghosted the Lord “whom you handed over and denied in Pilate’s presence, when he decided to release him” (Acts 3:13).

Peter was not accusing the people then or anyone today for being accomplices in Jesus Christ’s death because he himself denied the Lord thrice, remember? Peter ghosted Jesus too but repented. And that was his point to everyone including us today of how may times we too have ghosted Jesus when we sin against each other, when we betray our loved ones, when we are remiss in our duties and responsibilities, when we are unfaithful that people fail to experience the Risen Lord coming to them.

Peter is asking us this Sunday to look into ourselves at how we continue to ghost each other that we contribute to the vicious circle of violence happening in the world that often starts right in our family and community, even in the Church.

That is why the beloved disciple asks us in the second reading “to keep his commandments so that we may not commit sin” by rejecting the lusts of the flesh not only in the sexual sense but in all of our selfish interests. Most of all, to imitate Jesus Christ by living like Him full of love and kindness, always understanding and forgiving and caring especially of the weak and marginalized.

The Resurrection remains a mystery. It is a call for us to be real with flesh and bones not like a ghost. Easter is an invitation to live our lives as Easter people, full of joy and hope in Christ even when the chips are down.

Being real as opposed to ghosting means proclaiming Jesus Christ with our very own witnessing of His loving presence and service to others with our very lives.

Being real as opposed to ghosting is avoiding “back burning” those dearest to us.

Being real as opposed to ghosting is not “bread crumbing”, of being mediocre that we do only the bare minimum.

Easter is Jesus faithfully present with us especially in the most trying and difficult moments of our lives because He assures us nothing can keep us nor hostage us in whatever darkness or emptiness we are in.

Not being able to see someone does not mean that someone does not exist. Many times in life, it is after our loved ones are gone – permanently or temporarily – when we actually experience them closest. That’s because of the Resurrection of Jesus!

Let’s get real by praying:

Lord Jesus Christ,
open my mind and my heart
to Your words;
let me develop that prayer life
You have always been inviting me
to get into a relationship with You;
let me find You in my wounds
so I may find Your glory too;
let me find You in my many hurts
and scars in my heart so I may
find and share Your healing and
comfort with those still in the
darkness of Good Friday
or silence of Holy Saturday;
dearest Jesus,
fill me with life and joy
so that people may see You
in me alive
and not like a ghost.
Amen.

God does everything so well

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Fifth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 09 February 2024
1 Kings 11:29-32, 12:19 ><)))*> + ><)))*> + ><)))*> Mark 7:31-37

*Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, an orange-bellied flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma) somewhere in the Visayas, December 2023.*

Today, dear God,
I share in the joy
of the people at the time 
of your Son Jesus
when he healed a deaf in the
district of Decapolis:

They were exceedingly astonished and they said, “He has done all things well. He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”
Mark 7:37

Yes, loving Father,
you have done all things well,
so very well in fact,
in Jesus Christ our Lord
that I am also exceedingly astonished
with your love and mercy.

When I look back to my life
even amid all the storms and
failures I have had,
you still have done
 all things well in my favor;
when I remember those sufferings
I almost gave up and quit,
you have done all things
in my favor, making me stronger
and better, even wiser today;
when I look back to the many
losses and defeats I have had,
you still have done all things well
in my favor, teaching me the
values of perseverance, patience,
and fulfillment, as well as
the differences between
 happiness and joy,
success and fruitfulness.

Dear Father,
keep us open to your grace
and wisdom and plans for us;
most of all,
keep us open to Jesus Christ
who comes to us always even
in paths we least expect to find him,
in backward routes no one takes,
and in foreign territories
we refuse to venture into.
Let our daily prayer include
his command,
"Ephphatha"!
Amen.

Saying “no” leads us to rejoicing

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Third Sunday in Advent Week III-B, Gaudete Sunday, 17 December 2023
Isaiah 61:1-2, 10-11 ><}}}*> 1 Thessalonian 5:16-24 ><}}}*> John 1:6-8, 19-28

Our church is bursting with pink shades this Third Sunday of Advent known as Gaudete (Latin for rejoice) Sunday following calls from our antiphons and readings for us to rejoice in Jesus who had come more than 2000 years ago in Bethlehem.

We also rejoice on this date, the 17th of December, as we shift our focus to enter Advent’s second phase when we remember and reflect the events surrounding Christ’s birth on that first Christmas. Today is also the second day of our Simbang Gabi and without sounding a Scrooge, I wish to propose in my reflection this Sunday for us to examine those moments in the scriptures and in our lives when saying “NO” leads us too into great rejoicing.

It is normal most of the time that rejoicing comes after every big “YES” in life like when a woman finally says “YES” to her suitor or when a boss says “YES” to promote an employee. The reason mankind rejoices at Christmas is because of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s “YES” to be the Mother of Jesus Christ our Savior.

However, history and our own experiences have taught us also that the key to rejoicing is when we say “NO” or receive or do something in the negative like during the pandemic when we prayed for “negative results” whenever we would get COVID tests. A lot often in life, a negative can be positive like what we see in our gospel today:

A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. And this is the testimony of John. When the Jews from jerusalem sent priests and Levites to him to ask him, “Who are you?” he admitted and did not deny it, but admitted, “I am not the Christ.”
John 1:6-8, 19-20

See the progression of the negatives in the fourth gospel’s Prologue: after establishing “In the beginning was the Word” who is Jesus Christ the “life” and “light” in verses 1-5, John the Baptist is introduced with the immediate declaration “He was not the light, but came to testify to the light” in verses 6 and 8. In the following questioning by the priests and Levites sent from Jerusalem, John twice told them “I am not the Christ… not Elijah”, insisting with a strong “No” if he were the Prophet in verses 21-22 before wrapping up the scene with a solemn statement that “there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie” in verses 26-27.

What a lovely scene of negatives, of nots and nos!

Recall those moments in our past filled with painful rejections and humiliating failures that we now look back with rejoicing because of the valuable lessons we have learned and made us stronger today. We realize too that the past negative moments darkened by sin and evil were not totally bad at all as these have led us into the light of Jesus Christ that we now rejoice in being forgiven and loved. When we remember those trials and difficulties we have hurdled in life, we do not feel ashamed but actually feel so proud, being sources of rejoicing for all our victories and successes today.

As we have been saying, Jesus was born during the darkest night of the year, a big negative so we can see the great positive, Christ our Savior, our Light. He is the fulfillment of that great prophecy by Isaiah in the first reading which Jesus himself proclaimed at the start of his ministry in their synagogue in Nazareth on a sabbath.

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the Lord and a day of vindication by our God.
Isaiah 61:1-2

Luke tells us in his account how “the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently” at Jesus who then said, “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing” (Lk.4:20-21).

When there is fulfillment, rejoicing follows because that is when we say no to the many negatives holding and preventing us from welcoming Jesus in our lives.

When we feel poor and inadequate and try to find Christ beyond what we do not have, that is when we rejoice to find everything in him who fulfills, enriches and enables us in this life and beyond.

Rejoicing happens when we finally say no to our toxic relationships with people who break our hearts with their infidelities and say yes to Jesus who remain faithful and true to us in our family and old friends who truly loved us ever since.

True joy and rejoicing happen when we finally say no to unforgiveness of self and others, when we say no to the past sins and mistakes, baseless guilt-feelings that have held us captives for so long to find mercy and forgiveness in Jesus.

Every day is a part of the year of favor from the Lord, calling us to say no to hopelessness and despair, to say no to cynicism and indifference because Jesus always vindicates though slowly all our efforts and sacrifices, strivings and perseverance in being good and honest in a world that honors thieves and criminals.

Many times in life, rejoicing bursts when we say no to sin, when we say no to disrespect, when we say no to injustice and inequality. More rejoicings will surely come our way the moment we start saying no to violence and war, no to discrimination, no to deaths and violence, no to selfishness and vanities.

The list of the no’s we can say and affirm in Jesus Christ is endless for us to truly rejoice. But of all the great rejoicing in Christ that we need is to everyday have a firm and big NO to all our fears in loving.

One main reason our lives are miserable because we choose not to love for fears of being hurt, of losing, of separation, of death. St. Paul asks us in the second reading to rejoice always simply by choosing to love always too.

Brothers and sisters: Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Test everything; retain what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-19, 21-22

Recall how the great apostle Paul described to us in 1 Corinthians 13 what is love and what is to love; what he told us today in his letter to the Thessalonians are basically the same: love, love, and love. And the first expression of love of God is praying. Just like in human love, we always talk with the one we love. If we truly love, then we must keep on praying which is beng one with God who is love.

To love is simply to be good, to avoid sin and evil. True rejoicing can happen only when we love, when we shun and say NO to sin which is a refusal to love.

*Photo by author, Gaudete Sunday 2021, Basic Education Department chapel, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City.*

That is why throughout his ministry, Jesus chose to dine and be with sinners, never afraid of what others would say about him because he truly loved. His enemies could not rejoice for they chose to reject Christ’s calls for them to say no to judging others, say no to legalisms, say no to their self-righteousness and conceit. In their refusal to say no to their pride that have closed their minds and their hearts to God and others, they have chosen not to love and thereby failed to meet Jesus the Christ.

Until now, life continues to be miserable to many people because they could not accept Jesus Christ and his Cross, the very sign of his immense love for us. An essential part of the joy of this Christmas is the Cross of Good Friday looming behind that manger in Bethlehem. Before Christ, the cross used to be a big negative but with Jesus, it literally became a plus sign – a positive when he chose to suffer and die in order to rise again on Easter because he loves us so much. Like him, let us say no to sin and evil so we can rejoice in him and in love. Amen. Have a blessed final week towards Christmas Day!

True joy and gratitude

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the Twenty-first Week of Ordinary Time, Year I, 30 August 2023
1 Thessalonians 3:7-13 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 24:42-51

*Photo by author in Alfonso, Cavite, 2019.*

Loving Father,
it is always good 
to be affirmed,
to be praised, 
to be accepted;
but, like St. Paul,
there is no greater joy
for me than to be your
servant and vessel 
of grace!

Keep me simple
and humble,
to desire nothing 
but to do your will
and bring people
closer to you,
not me.

And for this reason we too give thanks to God unceasingly, that, in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received it not as a word of men, but as it truly is, the word of God, which is now at work in you who believe.
1 Thessalonians 2:13

Remind me always,
dear Lord, to share
only Jesus,
always Jesus;
let me learn to leave
the scene immediately
after I have accomplished
your will; most of all,
may the people I serve 
forget me to only remember
you alone.
Amen.