The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial of St. Paul VI, Pope, 29 May 2024 1 Peter 1:18-25 ><}}}}"> + ><}}}}"> + ><}}}}"> Mark 10:32-45
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
What a lovely Wednesday we have, God our loving Father right in the middle of so many issues that make us examine our heart and soul, what we truly value in this life as Peter reminds us of how much You value us so much as a people, every individual person:
Beloved: Realize that you were ransomed from your futile conduct, handed on by your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold but with the precious Blood of Christ as of a spotless unblemished lamb… You have been born anew, not from perishable but from imperishable seed, through the living and abiding word of God.
1 Peter 1:18-19, 23
Through Your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, help us realize dear Father these truths and realities of Your immense love for each one of us while we waste and take for granted the value of human life especially at its most vulnerable stages of infancy and old age as well as the sanctity of marriage; enlighten our minds and our hearts, especially those of our lawmakers and policy makers, most of all, the masses who are misled by so many into believing in the need for contraceptives and abortions, and divorce.
Forgive us, dear Jesus for the "hardness of our hearts" in insisting our own rules and laws, blinded by glory of power and wealth like the brothers James and John; let us heed your call that "whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant" (Mark 10:43).
In this great period in our history as a Christian nation when some people claiming to know more, claiming to know better totally disregard facts and true wisdom from the Spirit in advocating divorce and other agenda promoting the "culture of death", grant us O Lord Jesus Christ the courage You gave St. Paul VI to go against the tide by standing firm on Your truth in upholding human life by choosing the minority report "Humane vitae": St. Paul VI did not mind at all being maligned and persecuted even within the Church for he believed firmly at how You, O God value every person; how beautiful that in the end, You proved him right when You allowed St. Paul VI to intercede twice in the miraculous birth of two babies recommended by doctors for abortion due to difficult pregnancy and disability that eventually paved the way for his beatification and canonization.
Like St. Paul VI, let us be rooted in You, O God as we "dialogue with the modern world" by leading people to You in order to find fulfillment and meaning in life in the name of Christ. Amen.
St. Paul VI, Pray for us!
Pope Paul VI is seen in this portrait made in early 1969 (CNS photo) via wikipedia.org.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday in the Eighth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 28 May 2024 1 Peter 1:10-16 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 10:28-31
Photo by author, Simon Peter before Jesus after their bountiful catch in Galilee, May 2017.
Forgive me Jesus
for being so like Simon Peter,
so irrepressible on many occasions,
saying things without much
thinking and reflection
like in today's gospel
when he bragged to You,
"We have given up everything
and followed you" (Mark 10:28);
let me be aware always that
all that I have,
whatever good I can do
are all because of You, Jesus;
like Simon Peter,
let me grow and mature
in my faith in You
when he wrote us today
"be holy yourselves in every
aspect of your conduct,
for it is written, Be holy
because I am holy"
(1 Peter 1:15-16).
Make me holy, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit by first emptying me of myself, of my pride, of my insecurities, of my sins in order to be filled with Your Spirit so I may truly conform to You and be Your presence in the world today; I know I have not given that much yet to You through others for I still think of myself always; take away whatever I still keep and hide to myself that I am not aware of, remind me to abandon and offer everything to You. Amen.
12th century mosaic from Sicily of Peter drowning from orthodoxartsjournal.org.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 26 May 2024
Photo by author, San Juan, La Union, 25 July 2023.
Mysteries are like gifts wrapped so beautifully but not meant to be opened to be explained nor understood; rather, we simply have to let ourselves be wrapped by the gift of life’s mysteries to discover its many gifts that can enrich us in the process.
Just like the mystery of God, His being One in Three Persons called the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity which we celebrate this Sunday. Contrary to common beliefs, mysteries can be explained and understood but, not fully.
Yet, why live explaining and understanding everything?
That is why when God revealed Himself to us, He did not come explaining terms and concepts to us humans and instead conducted Himself in a most unique, personal manner. God related to us in a very personal way like another person by letting us experience His loving presence, His kindness and mercy, His justice and salvation, His healing and liberation as Father, Son and Holy Spirit (https://lordmychef.com/2024/05/25/the-gift-of-persons/).
That is why we have chosen for this Sunday’s music the 2016 Is It Any Wonder? by the American contemporary and R&B soul trio of singer Durand Jones, singer/drummer Aaron Frazer and guitarist Blake Rhein who call themselves as Durand Jones & The Indications. I accidentally discovered them along with other young musicians during the 2020 lockdown of COVID-19 pandemic. Their music is so cool coupled with lyrics so thoughtful. And mysterious. Like Is it Any Wonder? that sounds so matured yet so young, reminding us of our first crushes or first love when we got so lost in what to do and say whenever near the girl of our dream.
This road Is gonna take us back now You look so fine I don't know how to act now They say, "My child Don't stroll off easy 'Cause when it's time You gonna hear what she said"
Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder?
If you ever leave me alone I'll be cryin', wishin' you'd come home
When I look in your eyes I see you starin' at me, girl And when it's time I see you holdin' on me, girl
'Cause you You got a hold on me, yeah So, I'm Gonna make you see, yeah Aw, yeah
Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder?
With its classic tune and laid-back beat of guitar, drums and horns in the KEXP live version we prefer, Is It Any Wonder? speaks so well of life’s many mysteries that wrap us and move us at the same time to greater heights in believing more and loving more. Very often when we meet people, our tendency to welcome them is a result of their conduct with us, like this girl in the song Is It Any Wonder? Is she warm or cold, inviting or reserved and closed?
See how the song speaks so little – but heavily – of his experiences with his crush, leaving everything into wondering and awe, repeatedly singing, Is it any wonder?
To wonder, to be awed like a child is the beginning of love, of discovery of God and of the other person who fills the emptiness and longings within us. That is the gift of person, of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – there is always that mystery we can’t explain right away but we feel disarmed, wondering why we are drawn to God and others because of their conduct, of their kindness, of their offer of relationship. The key is to always wonder and bask into the beauty and gift of the other person, especially of God. Have a relaxing rainy Sunday!
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity-B, 26 May 2024 Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40 ><}}}*> Romans 8:14-17 ><}}}*> Matthew 28:16-20
Photo by author, the Holy Trinity as depicted at the Parish of St. John the Baptist, Calumpit, Bulacan, March 2021.
We are now into the Ordinary Time and for the next two consecutive Sundays we are celebrating three important Solemnities in the next three weeks.
First in these series of Solemnities in Ordinary Time is that of the Most Holy Trinity, the highest truth in our faith which is our belief in One God in three Persons. Contrary to common beliefs, mysteries can be explained and understood, but, not fully well. After all, mysteries are not really meant to be solved but simply be lived and enjoyed like the mystery of the person which is in the heart of the Most Holy Trinity: How can there be three Persons in one God?
Moses said to the people: “Ask now of the days of old, before your time, ever since God created man upon the earth; ask from one end of the sky to the other: Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking from the midst of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with his strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terror, all of which the Lord, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?”
Deuteronomy 4:32-34
Photo by author, sunrise at the Lake of Galilee in Israel, May 2019.
Our first reading this Sunday invites us too to examine ourselves and our lives to see how God has been so personal, so relational with us. As we say in Tagalog, “Sigue nga, paano mo naranasan ang Diyos?”
How did you experience God? Was it not just like the way we experienced other people in our relationships?
Very often when we meet people, our tendency to welcome or accept them were a result of their conduct, of their approach to us. If they are kind and good natured and warm, we are easily disarmed and we feel like knowing them.
That is what Moses was telling his people at that time, including us today: recall how personal was God in dealing with us with all His warmth and love because they indicate relationships and therefore, another person to relate with.
“The Trinity” (1425-27), an icon by Russian artist Andrei Rublev from wikipedia.org.
Remember how the books of the bible were written: the first questions the biblical writers asked were not the origins of the world but those asked by Moses today. After they have experienced the kindness and love of God that they eventually asked and reflected on the origins (genesis) of everything on earth and the universe.
In that experience, they felt a relationship with a Father as source of all life like dads giving life as well as protecting life and giving back life to those who may have lost it. That personal experience of God as a Father so loving and caring moved the biblical writers too to ask and reflect on the presence of evil and sufferings as we find in the Wisdom books like the Psalms and the Book of Job.
There is always the primacy of God’s personal relationship and of His conduct towards us humans that prompt us to “know” Him, to believe Him. Like people dear to us, God first revealed Himself to us in the most personal manner through a succession of events and other people we have met and known. That is why when we say “I believe in God”, we not only express a concept but also a relationship. Most of all, in this relationship is a commitment too to get to know God as a person! Before knowing any details about God or people, we first have relationships no matter how little it may be at the start. Later, we get phone numbers and other contact details with people we meet because we feel “committed” to getting to know them more in the future. In a sense, we believe them that is why we keep in touch with them. The same is true with God.
Photo by author, St. Catherine’s Monastery at the foot of Mt. Sinai in Egypt, May 2019.
The word person means “a conscious relating being”. Whether with God or with others, we experience the person and the relationship unfolding through time. There is always first the experience of a conduct like kindness before questions and details of a person come.
That word “kindness” actually indicates a relationship because its root is kin that means “one of us” or “of same tribe”. When we say “he is so kind to me”, it means he treats me as one of his family or his own. In that kindness and whatever good conduct present, there seems to be an “invisible line” linking us with people we meet. Or with God which the Holy Spirit does.
Of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is the most elusive in nature and yet, it is the most frequently and concretely in contact with us. It is the principle of unity in the Trinity and among us as we have reflected last Pentecost Sunday. Today, St. Paul explains to us how the Holy Spirit as a Person keeps these relationships among us and with God united and strong, enabling us to cry out “Abba” or “Our Father”. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the courage to keep our relationships as persons and with God especially at this modern time when some people refuse to recognize God and worst, some are bent in deleting God entirely from life.
That is why in today’s gospel, Jesus instructed His disciples including us today to “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mt.28:19-20). Persons always presuppose relationships; hence, the need to gather others always like what God did and continues to do in His Church.
It has been three weeks since my mother peacefully passed away. People ask me how am I doing. Truth is, I am not so well. I miss mommy so much. It is true we only realize the value of a person after he/she is gone. And it is most difficult with mothers!
Photo by author, Mt. Sinai in Egypt, May 2019.
Every time I come home, I have that strange feeling, wondering deep inside me of that great mystery, how did it happen that it was my mom – just one person – who had left us but our home has become so empty? Since May 7, that image of mommy’s empty room after her body was taken to the funeral had remained in my mind and as days passed, I have noticed how our home has been so hollowed when there are still my siblings and niece staying in the house?
That is the gift of person. A person fills not only spaces and homes but most of all, fills us. Every person fills another person in the same manner God first fills us with His love through persons dearest to us. That is why we believe in God.
Let us have good relationships with others so they may experience God too in their lives. Let us gather in the Father’s love in Jesus Christ to celebrate the gift of life together in the Holy Spirit through one another. Let us pray:
God our loving Father, thank you for the gift of life, for my gift of person and for the gift of so many persons in my life; dwell in me, Holy Spirit, fill me with your fire and life, animate me with the Son's justice and love so that in myself the mystery of the Blessed Trinity be alive. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday, Memorial of Our Lady of the Way (Madonna Della Strada), 24 May 2024 James 5:9-12 ><))))"> + ><))))"> + ><))))"> Mark 10:1-12
Photo by author, Santa Maria Della Strada Chapel, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Lord Jesus Christ, on this 24th of May, I join the Society of Jesus in honoring Your Mother they have affectionately called Santa Maria Della Strada, Our Lady of the Way; thank You for introducing me to her last year, a wonderful title of Mary reminding me always of You, Jesus, who declared Yourself as "the Way, the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6).
Help me, O Lord, along the way, to be faithful to You, keeping in mind the reminders of St. James today to "not complain about one another... to persevere like the prophets... and do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath, but let your 'Yes' mean 'Yes' and your 'No' mean 'No'" (James 5:9, 11, 12).
How timely are Your words, O Lord, in this world where promises and oaths are made only to be broken; make us more sincere in our words, to really mean what we say, to be committed and persevering always in standing by who we are as children of the Father, called to love and be merciful like Him.
We pray for all couples as well as priests and religious having crises in keeping their vows to You, Jesus, to lovingly serve You among the people You have entrusted us; through Mary Your Mother, our Lady of the Way, may we find You always Jesus in every turn and stop we make, to persevere especially when the path is so narrow and difficult, never to turn away when we find the Cross looming in sight.
Forgive us, dear Jesus, for the "hardness of our hearts", especially in those moments we refuse to listen and even stifle Your tiny voice of truth and compassion in our hearts, when we insist on following our own ways of pride and power than Your ways of peace and justice, kindness and care; take away our stony hearts, Lord, and give us natural hearts that beat with firm faith, fervent hope and unceasing charity and love in You like Mary, our Mother. Amen.
Photo by author, Santa Maria Della Strada Chapel, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday, Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Eternal High Priest, 23 May 2024 Hebrews 10:11-18 <*{{{{>< + <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 14:22-25
Praise and glory to You, Lord Jesus Christ for reminding us this Thursday after the Pentecost of Your call for us to be like You, our Eternal High Priest, in gentleness and mercy, kindness and love; and the good news is all these are already in us when we were baptized to share in Your priesthood the Father had promised to Jeremiah fulfilled in You:
The holy Spirit also testifiesd to us, for after saying: “This is the covenant I will establish with them after those days, says the Lord: ‘I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them upon their minds,'” he also says: “Their sins and their evildoing I will remember no more.” Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer offering for sin.
Hebrews 10:15-18
Two Sundays ago, we celebrated Your Ascension that is more relational in nature than spatial, the leveling up of our relationships with You and with one another that is affirmed today by this feast of You, Jesus our Eternal High Priest and Mediator when You established the New Covenant on that Last Supper:
As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.”
Mark 14:22-24
Photo by author, Chapel of St. Francis Xavier, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
These words, dear Jesus You fulfilled on the Cross the following Good Friday; in Your self-offering on the Cross, You fulfilled the temple worship by putting an end to those bloody sacrifices, rites and rituals of the Old that were empty due to the sins and weaknesses of the priests and people; in Your dying on the Cross as fulfillment of Your words at the Last Supper as our Eternal High Priest and Mediator, You have consecrated us as Your holy people; this perfect offering is what we celebrate, what we remember, what we make present daily in the Holy Eucharist; help us, therefore, dear Jesus, to be faithful and true to You by being more loving with one another as we face the Father in the Sacrifice of the Mass in You, through You and with You Jesus by sharing in Your Priesthood, help us laity and priests alike to be true in our witnessing, in our loving sacrifices for each other.
Every priest stands daily at his ministry, offering frequently those same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But this one offered one sacrifice for sins, and took his seat forever at the right hand of God. For by one offering he has made perfect those who are being consecrated.
Hebrews 10:11-12, 14
Photo by author, 2023.
Forgive us, Your priests and bishops, dearest Jesus whom You have called to act in "persona Christi" but have become more like the priests of the Old Testament so concerned with our name and position, power and wealth; forgive us, Lord Jesus, when we Your priests and bishops look and move like matinee idols or think and speak like managers than pastors of souls; forgive us, O Lord, when we Your priests and bishops have no more time to kneel daily be with You in prayers because we prefer to socialize and party with the rich and powerful that we miserably fail in finding You among the poor and the suffering.
Transform us priests and bishops to be more like You Jesus Christ, our Eternal Priest and Mediator in thinking, in speaking, in doing, in living, most especially in loving.
Let us not forget that You saved mankind by suffering and dying on the Cross, not with with programs and activities because Your glory can only be found on the Cross where death is conquered and led to life and light. Amen.
I have reflected last Sunday that Pentecost is not just an event in the past but a daily coming of the Holy Spirit upon us, enlightening us of so many things in life we used to take for granted. Like the value of every person, especially when there is a death of a loved one.
In fact, death is a Pentecost when the Holy Spirit comes to remind us that we never – and can never – replace our departed loved ones. Every person is irreplaceable, especially family members. The sooner we realize this, the better for us to avoid those guilty feelings later that we should have been more loving and kind, that we should have said “I love you” more often because we never know for how long we can be with our loved ones. One thing is for sure: we do not replace our deceased loved ones but simply re-member them.
Photo by author, Bgy. Kaysuyo, Alfonso, Cavite, 27 April 2024.
The word “remember” is very interesting.
It is from the root word “member” or “part”. When we put the prefix “re” which means “again”, “remember” means to make a part again of the present moment.
Every time we remember a person or an event, we make them part of our present moment. And they are most real, most present when our re-membering happens in the context of a family or a community. Re-membering someone by one’s self surely does happen a lot but very often, it is more of looking back to the past, recalling the days we used to be together. But when we remember somebody as a family or a community, the one we remember is indeed re-membered in our present, becomes real in everyone around celebrating his/her memory. Something concrete happens and the joy is more intense, leading to freedom from past, from pains and hurts of losing a loved one.
That is when death becomes a Pentecost. When the Holy Spirit came down upon the Apostles and the Blessed Virgin Mary in Jerusalem 50 days after Easter, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity did not come to replace Jesus. The Holy Spirit is a distinct Person of the Trinity in whose power all the followers and believers of Christ have been empowered to make Him present until now in our collective re-membering of Him in the Church and the Sacraments. In the Holy Spirit who comes to us daily, we overcome and transcend every death we go through in life, enabling us to re-member our departed loved ones by being a member of those left behind.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 18 March 2024.
Since mommy’s death, I have gone home thrice already. How I loved to walk inside her room, trying so hard to get those feelings or vibes when she was still alive I miserably miss most as the days moved on.
One thing I have noticed, though, is that strange feeling of our home suddenly so empty as in “kakalog-kalog” as we say in Tagalog. Mommy ko lang nawala sa amin pero parang nawala ang lahat sa bahay?
Now I know better why the mother is the light of the family or “ilaw ng tahanan” because after she had died, her light in our home was turned off that seemed to have made our home so dark, so light and hollowed. However, when we gathered as siblings together with our nieces and nephew and relatives, the warmth of our home returns as if mommy is with us , still with us.
That is when the Holy Spirit comes amid the darkness of every death. A Pentecost when we are reminded of those still with us who must band closer together to make our departed more present in our collective re-membering. No wonder, it was also the final instruction of Jesus to His disciples at their Last Supper when He told them as He gave them the chalice to “Do this in memory of me” or “in remembrance of me”. In Greek, it is called anamnesis which is more than remembering or recalling but making present, making a reality.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
And the reality is this – every person is valuable beyond measure.
So fragile too! Because we can easily lose them in a snap.
We realize and feel this most true in death when we experience deeply “someone like me” whom I love, whom I care for is gone because in every death of a beloved, a part of us dies too. Even if he/she is an enemy or somebody we are not in good terms with, we feel a loss within because for better or worst, the deceased made us feel our humanity.
It is said that “one life is too many.” Very true. Today God gives us the gift and power to re-member those not with us by connecting with those still living with us. Make that connection now and soon you too shall see the face we sorely miss together. Have a blessed remaining half-week!
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial of St. Rita de Cascia, Religious, 22 May 2024 James 4:13-17 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 9:38-40
"you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears" (James 4:14).
St. James' imagery of our lives and of our very selves are so light as the puff of a smoke but so heavy in meaning for it is true indeed we are nothing in this world without God; it is only in God we have worth and meaning.
Forgive us, dear Jesus when we are arrogant, proud and boastful, when we live so far from You, detached from You, living on our "own" as if we have control of everything; forgive us, dear Jesus when we are like John who tried to prevent someone driving out demons in Your name simply because he was not one of us; forgive us, dear Jesus whenever we think we have an edge over others simply because they are not with us in the Church or just because they are different in their approach and style.
Like St. Rita of Cascia to whom You did so many wondrous things, help us to rely solely in You, Jesus; that nothing is too late nor too early with Your grace for as long as we rely on You. Not in us. Amen.
Photo by author, San Juan, La Union, 25 July 2023.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Tuesday in the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 21 May 2024 James 4:1-10 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Mark 9:30-37
Photo by author, September 2020.
"Beloved: Where do the wars and where do the conflicts among you come from?" (James 4:1)
What a beautiful question to ponder upon on this second day of Ordinary Time, Lord Jesus: the "where", the origin, the source, the root of our many desires in life; ultimately, the question You have asked Your disciples "What were you arguing about on the way?" (Mark 9:33) leads also to the same question of James of "where".
Many times, O Lord, we presume and insist we are on the right tracks, on the right path following the world even if deep inside we know we are lost, we have gone astray, that we are on the wrong bearings in life because we merely follow the rest that like everybody, we end up lost and more confused than ever.
You covet but do not possess. You kill and envy but you cannot obtain; you fight and wage war. You do not possess because you do not ask. You ask but do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
James 4:2-3
Teach us, Jesus, to bravely ask ourselves from "where" are we coming from in everything we are doing, saying, and pursuing; help us to be sincere and humble of our "where" wherever it may be; most of all, let us ask too "where" we are going to "where" do we want to be.
During these 33 to 34 weeks in Ordinary Time, let us find, our bearing in YOU, Jesus so that our "where" from and "where" to would only be YOU. Amen.
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday, Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church, 20 May 2024 Acts 1:12-14 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> John 19:25-34
Icon of Mary “Mater Ecclesiae” (Mother of the Church) in St. Peter’s Square from opusdei.org.
What a wonderful way of assuring us today, dear Jesus, at the resumption of Ordinary Time of Your presence and guidance throughout this year in giving us Your Mother the Blessed Virgin Mary as "Mater Ecclesiae", Mother of the Church.
From the very beginning, during Your public ministry until Your death on the Cross, Mary Your Mother has always stood by Your side, Jesus; when You sent the Holy Spirit on that Pentecost day in Jerusalem, Mary was also present with Your disciples praying in the Upper Room: "All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with some women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers" (Acts 1:12).
What a beautiful portrayal of the Church on its very first day as Your Body, O Christ, gathered in prayer with Mary whom You have given to us through Your beloved disciple at the Cross: "When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, 'Woman, behold your son.' Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother'" (John 19:26-27).
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
As we resume today Ordinary Time, may we imitate Mary Your Mother, O Lord, in being a faithful disciple, open to welcome and accept You, Jesus, saying "Yes" to Your will like at the Annunciation; let our faith in You be firm like hers at the wedding at Cana when she told You immediately how the newly-weds have ran out of wine, instructing the servants to do whatever "he tells you"; most of all, like Mary, let us remain intimate with You, Jesus in prayers, her most important trait as Your faithful and model disciple.
Teach us, dear Jesus, to be like Mary, deeply absorbed in You in prayers; her standing at the Cross was not a result of a spur in the moment but the fruit of her long, vibrant prayer life centered in You her Son; unlike us, we come and pray to You only when we are going through trials and difficulties but when everything is going well in life, we hardly remember You, Lord, nor pray at all.
All her life, Mary lived in prayer, in communion and oneness in You, Jesus that is why when the Church was born on Pentecost, Mary was there. She has always been with us as our Mother and companion in mission; let us be like Mary in her discipleship that is essentially a prayer life. Amen.
Photo by author, Della Strada Chapel, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
lordmychef.com 