On shedding tears and crying

Quiet Storm by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 23 November 2021
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

I recently attended the 30th anniversary to the priesthood of my classmate from high school seminary who’s dying of a rare kind of cancer. Due to my being “mababa ang luha”, tears easily rolled from my eyes before the Mass started when I saw his mother sobbing as we brought him to his designated “lazy boy” at the altar.

This may sound weird but I must insist, I was not crying during that Mass for Fr. Sammy; just teary-eyed because everything was so touching.

In attendance were five of us classmates from the minor seminary, four priests and one lay, Fr. Sammy’s twin brother, Sannie. Main celebrant was our former prefect of discipline, Msgr. Albert while the homilist was the youngest in our class (1982) now our Vicar-General, Msgr. Pablo who recalled our high school seminary days when we were so young at 13-16 years old, and so thin, except me!

That was when more tears rolled from the corner of my eyes, making me wonder if there was any difference between shedding of tears and crying: my sight was never blurred without any need for me to wipe away my tears so often, and unlike in sobbing or crying, there was no gasping for air nor runny nose. I just felt there was a magical stream at the corner of my eyes overflowing with crystal-clear waters that felt so good as I reminisced our high school days.

But, I knew it was a lull in the storm… and soon, our dams of tears would surely break loose when the inevitable happens. For now, let’s not talk about it and just go back to my real topic, the shedding tears and crying.

Across the city of Jerusalem and way up from the Garden of Gethsemane is the Church of Dominus Flevit (the Lord Wept) whose roof is shaped like tears. It is the site believed to be where Jesus wept over Jerusalem for its coming destruction that eventually happened on the year 70 AD.

Photo by author, 2017, Church of Dominus Flevit, the Holy Land.

Notice that Jesus did not simply cry; he wept!

The Bible tells us that Jesus also wept was at the gravesite of his friend Lazarus whom he later raised to life (Jn.11).

How touching it must have been to see our Lord Jesus weeping, so human and most of all, so loving to his friends and for us all.

And that is what tears express, the deep love within us for one another, an outpouring of our love that look like beads of prayer.

While tears do come from ducts near our eyes that are automatically secreted when something foreign gets into our eyes to cleanse them, tears ultimately come from the soul that are deposited into the heart to cleanse and heal its wounds and scars left when we gave a part of ourselves in love. In the same manner, tears express our inner desires for love and acceptance, understanding and kindness, mercy and forgiveness, and most especially, for God and a loved one.

According to scientists, the chemical composition of tears vary depending on the emotion expressed why we cry; but, whether they are tears of joy or tears of sadness, tears are always a grace from God as they cleanse our eyes, our hearts and souls so we may see clearly everything in life, specially the face of the persons next to us or even far from us, whom to love, whom to trust, whom to believe again.

To be able to cry or to simply shed tears 
means we are still alive, 
that our heart is still beating, 
still aching because we love.

Is there really a distinction between shedding tears and crying? I really do not know but what I am certain of is that tears are the most unique expressions of our human emotions that come from the deepest core of our being that when they flow in our crying and weeping, our whole body and very selves are fully involved. No wonder, crying can also be the most beautiful and eloquent prayer to God when our heart is overwhelmed with pain and sadness, even grief, or joy and happiness which our mouths cannot say but only our hearts can see.

That must be what Eric Clapton have felt when he wrote Tears in Heaven in 1992 following the tragic death of his four year old son Conor who accidentally fell from the 54th floor of their apartment in New York City.

To be able to cry – or to simply shed tears – means we are still alive, that our heart is still beating, still aching because we love and longing for love.

May our tears pave the way for beautiful smiles and joys in the heart in the days to come! Amen.

Photo by author, 24 October 2021.

Deus Semper Major

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Memorial of St. Clement, Pope and Martyr, 23 November 2021
Daniel 2:31-45,   ><)))*> + ><)))*> + ><)))*>   Luke 21:5-11
Photo by Mr. Jim Marpa, 2019.
Glory and praise to you,
our loving and almighty
God and Father!
Your power and might,
majesty and grandeur are
all around us, even deep 
within each one of us and yet,
still many deny your presence, 
deny your existence.
Enter our consciousness, Lord,
enter our dreams like with 
King Nebuchadnezzar to remind us
nothing remains here on earth, 
that you are always greater, O God,
"semper major"!

In the lifetime of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed or delivered up to another people; rather, it shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and put an end t0 them, and it shall stand forever.

Daniel 2:44
Even your Son Jesus Christ
reminded us through the apostles
how everything would crumble and 
fall, including your Temple at 
Jerusalem, putting an end to everything 
until he comes again to bring upon us
new heaven and new earth.
And so, grant us, Lord,
perseverance and fidelity
to remain humble before you
like St. Clement who bore all sufferings
during the persecution but remained
faithful to you, calling on the early Church
he led as Pope at that time to remain 
one in you, our only Rock foundation
in faith, hope and love.  Amen.

The best of the very best

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr, 22 November 2021
Daniel 1:1-6, 8-20  ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'>  Luke 21:1-4
Photo from http://www.reddit.com. 
Very often in life, we rarely
think of you dear God our Father
when we try to consider the best
we could ever have; if ever we
remember you, you always come
last because we always want 
the finest and most premium as
something tangible, something we
can hold and even possess.
On this final stretch of our 
liturgical calendar before we move
to our "new year" with the First Sunday
of Advent, your words remind us 
very well how we continue that practice
of searching and possessing the best -
food, clothes, vessels, gadgets, 
even minds and talents or persons
like King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,
the conqueror of Judah who ransacked 
your Temple of its precious vessels and 
threw your people into exile.
When he asked for the brightest and 
best men of Judah be separated to serve
at his court, he gave them the best food
and wine to ensure that they function well
when summoned; how amazing were your
servants led by Daniel who refused to eat
the king's food and wine in your honor; 
despite their simple meals of vegetables 
and water, Daniel and his company emerged 
as the best young men in the king's court.

In any question of wisdom or prudence which the king put to them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his kingdom.

Daniel 1:20
Meanwhile at the donation box
of the temple, your Son Jesus
found the widow who gave two
small coins as the best donor
of all because she gave her very self
to God unlike the rich who gave only
a portion of what they no longer needed.
Teach us, dear God, that you are
the very best of the best we can ever
have and offer in this life;
may we aspire to have you more -
your love and kindness,
your mercy and justice,
your wisdom and understanding,
your very life and presence
so that we may also learn to give
our total self to you.
Like St. Cecilia, may we sing
your song, O God in our hearts,
giving our very selves to your
loving service for others.  Amen.

Any World (That I’m Welcome To) by Steely Dan (1975)

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music by Fr. Nick F. Lalog II, 21 November 2021
Photo by author, Singapore, 2018.

Please suspend any judgment yet for our choice of music this Sunday: I have waited so long for this inspiration to come in my prayers since we started this blog on music linked with the gospel.

Yes, I have always been a big fan – a Danhead – of Steely Dan since my elementary days in the mid-70’s and thanks to YouTube and the internet, the more I have come to love their music now that I am a priest!

Though I must confess that I have never learned nor fully understood their lyrics until now, I have always been faithfully in love with their music that is brusque and sophisticated at the same time yet charming and mysterious.

Just Google the meaning of Steely Dan, the band is essentially the duo of the late Walter Becker and Donald Fagen whose ability to gather the best musicians in itself is a stroke of genius.

Next to prayers, Steely Dan music has been my best antidote against all the blues, worries and fears since this pandemic began last year. And when burdens are so heavy that I feel so down, this is the Steely Dan tune I liked most at this time as it spoke so well exactly how I would always feel:

If I had my way
I would move to another lifetime
I’d quit my job
Ride the train through the misty nighttime
I’ll be ready when my feet touch ground
Wherever I come down
And if the folks will have me
Then they’ll have me

Any world that I’m welcome to
Is better than the one I come from

From their album Katy Lied released in 1975, Any World (That I’m Welcome To) speaks so well of our longing to go to another world where everything fits us right — the kind of feeling we tend to have when our plans do not happen, when everything seems to be wrong and out of order.

Like all their songs, Any World is loaded with philosophical musings by Becker and Fagen that words could not sufficiently express and that is why they always have to improvise and innovate in their music and instrumentations that sound so sublime, filled with enigma.

But, where is Jesus Christ and our celebration today of Christ the King in this music which many of my elders used to frown when I was growing up (and discerning my vocation)?

The inspiration came to me while praying on the first reading, on the “vision” of the prophet Daniel of the “Son of man” or Savior God sent to save us, Jesus Christ. Instantly, I remembered the last stanza of this song:

I think I’ll go to the park
Watch the children playing
Perhaps I’ll find in my head
What my heart is saying
A vision of a child returning
A kingdom where the sky is burning
Honey I will be there
Yes I’ll be there

Any world that I’m welcome to
Is better than the one I come from

And when we try visualize the gospel from John of the trial of Jesus before Pilate, the more we wish we are in any world where we are welcomed to! How ironic when we continue to put God on trial, always questioning him for all our woes, doubting his love and presence, his kingship, his very person in Jesus Christ (https://lordmychef.com/2021/11/20/jesus-truly-our-king/).

And that is where I find the genius and “spirituality” of Becker and Fagen: their music like Any World not only tells us of our deep longings but also at the same time of our convictions that there is something better, something good coming despite all the problems and darkness we have in life.

Yes, it will be pushing too hard to speak of faith and religion with Steely Dan music but, as I have cautioned you at the start, suspend any judgment and get the feel of Becker and Fagen in the second stanza of this great song:

I can hear your words
When you speak of what you are and have seen
I can see your hand
Reaching out through a shining daydream
Where the days and nights are not the same
Captured happy in a picture frame
Honey I will be there
Yes I’ll be there

Any world that I’m welcome to
Is better than the one I come from

Who else can understand us so well, who can see everything in us and most of all would be there? That must be Jesus, truly our King who died for us to make this a better world for us!

Have a blessed Sunday!

*We have no intentions of infringing into the copyrights of this music and its uploader except to share its beauty and listening pleasure.

From YouTube.com.

Jesus, truly our King

The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus, King of the Universe, 21 November 2021
Daniel 7:13-14 ><]]]]'> Revelation 1:5-8 ><]]]]'> John 18:33-37
Photo by GMA-7’s Mr. Raffy Tima, 07 November 2021.

We now come to the final Sunday of our liturgical calendar, leading us to our “new year” next Sunday with the Season of Advent. See how we in the Church begin and end every liturgical year: in the four Sundays of Advent we prepare the coming of Jesus the “King of kings” and now we close the year with the Solemnity of Christ the King.

But despite this emphasis of our celebrations on the kingship of Jesus, many people still refuse to recognize him as King while more others are not clear yet of his kind of kingship. Until now, the same scene of Jesus being tried by Pilate continues to happen when we put Christ on trial, questioning him if he were truly a king.

Pilate said to Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world…”

John 18:33-36
“Ecce Homo” painting by Murillo from commons.wikimedia.org.

So many times in life, we keep asking God with many questions but we cannot take his answers. Instead of being contented with what he tells us, we even feel slighted when it is God who wishes to clarify our questions.

Jesus asked Pilate whether his question was really his own or due to others’ perception because to recognize Jesus as King is ultimately to recognize his very person as the Son of God, true God and true man who became like us so we may become like him.

Every Sunday this year, Mark (and John for six weeks) step by step presented to us like an unfolding the identity of Jesus who “spoke with authority” unlike the scribes and priests of his time, mighty in power and in deeds who could command the sea and the winds, heal the sick and bring back to life the dead. This Sunday, all questions by the disciples and the people “who is this man” are answered with finality by Jesus himself.

Photo by author, Chapel of St. John at Cana, Galilee, 2019.

Evidently in our readings and in our own lives, we have experienced Jesus always in control, truly a king in total command especially in hopeless situations like when there was a great crowd with just a handful of bread or when they were caught in a violent storm in the middle of the sea.

Like the Prophet Daniel and the beloved disciple John in the first two readings, we need to have their conviction in God’s very person first.

Daniel lived at the time of severe trials when King Antiochus of Greece invaded Israel, desecrated the Temple of Jerusalem, and killed so many Jews who refused to worship idols and eat pork. It was the topic last week’s daily first readings from the Book of Maccabees.

Despite those very difficult times, Daniel saw in his vision his very conviction of the coming of God’s Messiah called “Son of man” – the title Jesus adopted top himself – who would deliver Israel from their enemies with his “everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away; his kingship shall not be destroyed” (Dn. 7:14).

In a similar way, John expressed his conviction and faith in God through Jesus Christ in his vision of the Lord’s “coming amid the clouds…even those who pierced him”, calling him “the Alpha and the Omega, the one who and who was and who is to come, the almighty” (Rev.1:7, 8).

In both visions by the prophets who not only saw and spoke the words of God but most of all, lived out his very words that they made God’s will happened, there is no doubt of the kingship of Jesus Christ as the God of history, its origin and final destination. Both Daniel and John were convinced of the very person of God, of the One who has the final say in this life through Jesus Christ and whose powers reign supreme from the past to the present and into the future.

And so, never lose hope in life and its various aspects, from the simplest to the most complex. There is nothing that God cannot prevail upon for he got us all in his hands. Most of all, Jesus had triumphed over death and sin. Let us have that faith and conviction in him.

But there is still something deeper in that trial of Jesus by Pilate we also repeat in our own time: it reveals not only the tensions about the spiritual and material realms, of the kingdom of God and of the kingdom of men but also of our own self-identity.

So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

John 18:37
Photo by author, Chapel of the Holy Family, Sacred Heart Spirituality Center, Novaliches, QC, 2016.

At the crux of the trial of Jesus – then and now – is man’s usurpation of power as “king” of the world, as captain of his ship and master of his fate, of his obsession to break free from God, crowning himself as the king of the world. It is a question that boils down to issues with our own identity.

Notice the “irritation” of Pilate with the question of Jesus, trying to separate and distance himself from Jesus, as if he was different, not one of them but immediately in the course of their conversation, Pilate himself would conclude that “then, you are a king” – a self indictment to himself that also answered his question to Jesus!

Here is the irony, the twist in our pursuit to assert our very selves as the one in charge in life, in this world like Pilate when we fall into our own traps against God. The more we run away from him, the more we separate ourselves from him and refuse to do anything with him, eventually we swallow our own pride before God, confessing that indeed, he is the Boss, the one in charge.

And that is the truth, something inherent in us, something we cannot shrug off and deny.

Jesus is our King because he has made us into his kingdom, the very reason he was born and came into the world, to testify to this truth.

Truth in the bible means the path to follow. And that is who Jesus is, the way because he is the truth and the life (Jn.4:16). Without him, we are nothing. And the path he shows us is the path of the Cross which he had repeatedly explained to us these last two months.

“Losing one’s head/self in prayer”, photo by GMA7 News Ms. JJ Jimeno, 2019.

In this Solemnity of Christ the King, Jesus reminds us of this basic truth we always evade, of how he invites us to elevate or “level up” our lives and existence in him through the Cross. The sooner we accept and embrace his Cross, the sooner we experience his kingship and great power over our lives.

The main stumbling block why people cannot accept or are confused that Jesus Christ is our King is our refusal to accept or denial of the path of the Cross of Jesus. Power in the world is always equated with force and prestige, in the ability to dominate and subdue others.

How amazing, how wonderful to see our almighty and powerful King took the path of powerlessness to show us his immense power. Let it be a reminder to each one of us to imitate and follow that path. Most of all, to never lose hope especially at this time when so many fake kings and wannabe kings abound, making all promises without having proven anything at all and worst, lacking the moral integrity to lead.

It is now in our very hands, if we are truly the followers of Christ the King that “we make his kingdom come and his will be done here on earth like in heaven” by taking the decisive steps to witness his Cross and sufferings by standing and abiding by his very truth. Amen.

Have a blessed week ahead!

From inquirer.net,20 August 2021.

We are God’s temple

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Week XXXIII, Year I in Ordinary Time, 19 November 2021
1 Maccabees 4:3-37, 52-59   ><)))*> + <*(((><   Luke 19:45-48
Photo by Ms. Ria De Vera, November 2020.
Today you remind us, dear God
our Father, of the need to keep our
house of worship always in order, 
clean and sacred; like Judas and
his brothers who rededicated and purified
your Temple in Jerusalem after driving
away the pagans, may we also keep
in mind that your house of worship is
always indicative of the kind of relationship 
and faith we have in you.
While it is very true you dwell in us
your people, O God, for we are indeed
your temple, we cannot discount the fact
that the way our church buildings and facilities 
look like show the kind of people we are, 
of how much care and respect we have for you 
and for one another; buildings and material
structures of any church and house of worship
always reflect the spirituality or lack of it 
of the pastors who minister and the
people who celebrate and worship there.
It is in this manner we become truly
your very temple! 
Cleanse our hearts in Jesus Christ,
may he dwell in our hearts and reign
over us so that we the people, the 
body of believers become your true
temple dear God, no matter what others
may say for or against us like the chief
priests, scribes and leaders of the 
people during the time of Jesus.
Amen.

Zeal for God not enough

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Dedication of the Basilicas of Sts. Peter and Paul, 18 November 2021
1 Maccabees 2:15-29   ><]]]]*> + <*[[[[><   Luke 19:41-44
Photo by author, Capernaum, Israel, 2017.
Once again we celebrate today
the Dedication of two other major 
churches in Rome, the Basilicas of 
St. Peter and St. Paul, the two pillars
of the Church who signify our unity 
as one body in Jesus Christ.
Thank you, dear God our Father
for this tremendous grace of being
your holy people that unfortunately
many among us disregard, even 
refuse to recognize; worst, many have turned 
away from the Church in the belief that
they can worship you on their own.
Teach us anew the importance 
of having "zeal" for you and your Church, 
of being zealous for your house of stone here
like Jesus two weeks ago who cleaned the temple
and now like Mattathias and his men 
filled with zeal in preserving the sanctity 
and honor of your house of worship;
twice the word “zeal” was used in today's
first reading to show the men’s passion for you, 
dear God.

Then Mattathias went through the city shouting, “Let everyone who is zealous for the law and who stands by the covenant follow after me!” Thereupon he fled to the mountains with his sons, leaving behind in the city all their possessions. Many who sought to live according to righteousness and religious custom went out into the desert to settle there.

1 Maccabees 2:27-29
How sad, O God, 
when it is us your priests 
who lack the zeal 
in keeping your sanctuary holy 
and dignified for worship;
worst, when we also lack 
the courage to sustain our zeal for you!
Zeal for you alone is never enough, Lord, 
while too much zeal can sometimes 
distract us from you; give us focus
and direction in our zeal for you.
Let us not be like Simon Peter 
who zealously asked Jesus to let him 
walk on water but upon seeing the strong winds, 
he was terrified and started to sink;
help us learn in prayers and faith like
St. Peter and St. Paul, Mattathias and his men
"who sought to live according to righteousness 
and religious custom went out into the desert" 
to cultivate and harness other virtues needed 
so that our zeal for you would lead us and 
your people closer to you in worship and in
service.  Amen.

In praise of women

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious, 17 November 2021
2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31   ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'>   Luke 19:11-28
Photo by the author, 2019.
God our loving Father,
today I offer this prayer and 
praise to all the women of 
the world - to all mothers who
brought us to life and nurtured
us in your love and kindness, for
all women who make life go on
and prosper, even easier and 
comfortable for us all, for women
who toil and labor everywhere but
always abused or disadvantaged,
misunderstood and mistreated, 
worst, forgotten and neglected.
Like the mother of those seven sons
in our first reading today, I pray for all
women, praising and thanking them for
their "womanly heart with manly courage".

It happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested and tortured with whips and scourges by the king, to force them to eat pork in violation of God’s law. Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother, who saw her seven sons perish in a single day, yet bore it courageously because of her hope in the Lord. Filled with noble spirit that stirred her womanly heart with manly courage, she exhorted each of them in the language of their ancestors with these words: “I do not know how you came into existence in my womb; it was not I who gave you the breath of life, nor was it I who set in order the elements of which of you is composed. Therefore, since it is the Creator of the universe who shapes each man’s beginning, as he brings about the origin of everything, he, in his mercy, will give you back both breath and life, because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of his law.”

2 Maccabees 7:1,20-23
What is a "womanly heart", Lord?
Like you when you presented yourself
like a mother in Isaiah 49:15 who cannot
ever forget her child, we thank you for the
gift of fidelity and faith of every woman 
specially your many noble causes, first of
which are love and life; I pray for all women,
single and married, for deeper faith amid the 
heavy burdens they have to carry on their 
shoulders both at home and at work; not
to forget too are the women who taught us
to pray, those who made us experience 
your reality as God with their patience, 
understanding, and forgiveness.
What is "manly courage", Lord?
Like your Son Jesus Christ who had
come to the world to save us and make
you known to us, it is most wonderful
how the Blessed Mother Mary's heart 
was pierced with sword when full of courage,
she stood by him at the Cross. 
I pray, dear God, for so many women today
into so many fights, sometimes left alone
by themselves with just faith and courage 
in their hearts that someday your truth
and justice would prevail.  In a most special
way, I pray for all women battling cancer and 
other sickness these days:  grant them healing
in body, mind, heart, and soul.
Most of all, dearest God, I pray for 
all women in their senior years:  grant
them grace and serenity in facing eternity,
fill their hearts with joy and gratitude for
lives well spent in you, specially those like
the servants in the gospel who have invested
and made their "talents" grow in loving service
to you.  
And lastly but not the least, I pray for 
all the women who have gone ahead of us, 
our beloved ones.  Grant them eternal rest in you,
O Lord, and may your perpetual light shine
upon them always.  Amen.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, pray for us!

Parol ating pastol

Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-16 ng Nobyembre 2021
Larawan kuha ng may-akda, 11 Nobyembre 2021.
Hindi ko maiwasang umindak
sa awiting "kumukuti-kutitap,
bumubusi-busilak" tuwing 
makakakita ng mga parol 
nakasabit sa mga binatana,
binebenta sa kalsada
kahit malayo pa ang Pasko.
Ang mga parol ay tulad ng pastol
umaakay sa atin sa gitna ng dilim
hatid ay liwanag at galak
upang matunton at marating
Sanggol na sumilang sa sabsaban
habang mundo ay balot sa kasamaan
upang tayo ay tubusin sa ating mga kasalanan.
Larawan kuha ng may-akda, 11 Nobyembre 2021.
Makukulay, puno ng sigla
alalaong-baga, buhay na buhay
itong mga parol at iba pang mga palamuti
hatid ay hindi lamang ngiti sa labi
kungdi tuwa at kagalakan sa puso at kalooban
isang taon na naman matatagpusan
kahit COVID-19 kayang lampasan!
Katulad ng mga bituin at tala
mga parol at palamuti ng Kapaskuhan
matutunghayan lamang sa gitna
ng malaking kadiliman kagaya sa ating buhay
kung kailan mayroong kapighatian 
at lahat ay nalalabuan, doon naman
nagiging maliwanag at makulay ang lahat!
Larawan kuha ng may-akda, 11 Nobyembre 2021.
Isang kabalintunaang tunay
ganda at busilak ng mga parol
sa atin nagpapastol tungo sa
liwanag ng kinabukasan;
sana manatiling nagningning 
liwanag ni Kristo sa puso at 
kalooban natin. 
Aking dasal at hiling
ngayong Paskong darating
sana matapos na itong COVID-19;
matularan sana natin mga parol
magpastol sa kawan, huwag silang maligaw
sa kadiliman  ng mga mapanlinlang 
tanging Diyos ang maging sandigan.
Larawan kuha ng may-akda, 11 Nobyembre 2021.

The evil that is pretense

The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Week XXXIII, Year I in Ordinary Time, 16 November 2021
2 Maccabees 6:18-31   ><)))*> + <*(((><   Luke 19:1-10
Photo by author, 2020.
Once again, O God our Father,
your words today are as timely as
the news headlines, perfect in 
reminding us to remain faithful
and true to you, most especially
to be men and women of integrity,
resisting all forms of pretense, of 
deceiving in purpose for whatever 
reason.
Teach us to be firm like your 
servant Eleazar who strongly turned
down offers to save his life by 
pretending to eat pork as ordered
by their pagan conquerors; 
he chose death than deceive 
and mislead the people,
specially the young ones.

He (Eleazar) told them to send him at once to the abode of the dead, explaining: “At our age it would be unbecoming to make such a pretense; many young people would think a ninety-year-old Eleazar had gone over to an alien religion. Should I thus pretend for the sake of a brief moment of life, they would be led astray by me, while I would bring shame and dishonor on my old age. Even if, for the time being, I avoid the punishment of men, I shall never, whether alive or dead, escape the hands of the Almighty. Therefore, by manfully giving up my life now, I will prove myslef worthy of my old age.”

2 Maccabees 6:23-27
Teach us also to be like
Zacchaeus, who despite his 
being a publican and a sinner,
made no pretense of being 
good or holy before Jesus
when he passed by the city
of Jericho; he did not pretend to
be tall or of any stature that he 
made the great effort to climb
a tree in order to see Jesus passing;
most of all, he shed all kinds of
pretense in himself when he vowed
to Jesus to repay people he had extorted
money from.
We pray, dear God, for our nation,
for our voters specially the young
people to closely examine the integrity
of every candidate running for office
so we may choose men and women
who are "models of courage" and 
"unforgettable examples of virtue"
(2 Maccabees 6:31).  Amen.