The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Memorial of St. Cornelius, Pope, & St. Cyprian, Bishop, Martyrs, 16 September 2022
1 Corinthians 15:12-20 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Luke 8:1-3
Photo by author, Museo Orlina, Tagaytay City, 15 September 2022.
Today I pray, dear Jesus,
for all the women of the world:
our mothers and sisters,
our nieces and aunties,
our grandmothers and girlfriends;
bless the wives and single-ladies,
the women working inside and outside
in all levels of the corporate world
and the various industries,
the women in the armed forces
and in the police;
bless and guide
the women who serve the poor
and disadvantaged,
the women who serve in the church,
the women who serve in government,
the women who take care of their
families especially those sick,
the women who are sick;
gladden the hearts and comfort
the women never appreciated
by their own family and the society,
the women who cry in silence
for being taken for granted
and neglected,
the women who hurt inside,
the women imprisoned physically,
emotionally, and mentally;
bless the women in the frontline
of health care especially those in
far-flung areas; special blessings
also O Lord, on those women
reading and praying this now.
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their resources.
Luke 8:1-3
Dearest Jesus Christ,
grant us the freedom like you
to freely go out with women
frowned upon by society;
most of all, teach us to always
respect women and everyone
for we are all equal in dignity
before God our Father and Maker;
help us find you among the
misunderstood, the judged,
the boxed and labelled simply
for voicing out their thoughts and
feelings as well as those victims of
social inequalities; free us from our many
biases and prejudices against others,
especially against women.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows, 15 September 2022
Hebrews 5:7-9 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> John 19:25-27
“Mater Dolorosa” also known as “Blue Madonna” (1616) by Carlo Dolci. Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
A day after celebrating
the Feast of the Exaltation
of the Cross, you remind us today
dear Jesus of your most wonderful
gift to us, a companion and a model in
discipleship, Mary your Mother.
Being the first disciple,
Mary was the first to receive
and welcome you at your Annunciation,
the first to truly believe in you when she
immediately told you how the newly-wed
couple ran out of wine at Cana,
and the first to remain in you at the foot
of the Cross; there at the Cross as your
Sorrowful Mother, Mary taught us the most
important aspect of discipleship: intimacy
in you and with you in prayer.
Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. 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.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.
John 19:25-27
As I prayed on this memorial of
Our Lady of Sorrows, I wondered what
was your Mother Mary was doing there
at the foot of your Cross, Lord Jesus?
More than the tears and sorrow on her
face as portrayed in arts,
all I can see and experience
at her most lovely face, O Lord,
is a disciple so absorbed in prayer,
so united and close with you!
How sad, dear Jesus, that many
of us have forgotten this very
important aspect of discipleship
your Mother had shown us,
a life centered on prayer;
more than reciting prayers,
it is residing in you, Jesus!
Teach us, dear Jesus,
to be like Mary, to truly take
her like the disciple you loved
of being intimate with you and the
Father in prayers; her standing at the
foot of your Cross did not simply happen
at the spur of the moment; it was the highest
moment of her long periods of time spent in
prayers, of communing with you and in you;
many times, we only come to you when we are
standing at your Cross, when trials and
difficulties happen but when everything is
going well, we hardly remembered you nor be
with you at prayer.
All her life,
Mary lived her life in
prayer in you and with you
dear Jesus; when the Pentecost
happened, she was praying
with your disciples at the Upper
Room awaiting the coming of the
Holy Spirit; teach us, Lord Jesus,
that discipleship is essentially
prayer; whatever we do,
it is always borne out of prayer.
Our Lady of Sorrows,
pray for us your children,
especially your priests who are
supposed to be disciples too of
your Son to immerse ourselves
in prayer first of all because before
all else came, there was Jesus Christ
who came first calling us,
sending us on a mission to
proclaim the good news to everyone.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, 14 September 2022
Number 21:4-9 ><}}}*> Philippians ><}}}*> John 3:13-17
Photo by Mr. Gelo Nicolas Carpio, January 2020.
With their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses
(Numbers 21:4).
God our loving Father,
grant us patience and
perseverance in this journey
of life, to never complain against
you when things get difficult
and dark, or uncertain sometimes;
open our minds and
our hearts to find you,
to see you in Christ Jesus
who had come to accompany us
in this journey of life so we may be
transformed into better persons
who are more loving,
more kind,
and more like you,
our dear Father.
Teach us, dear God,
to imitate Jesus in emptying
ourselves in order to be filled
with your Spirit so that we may
realize that the path to true
greatness, to exaltation is
opposite the direction of the world
of adulations and affirmations,
ease and comforts
but through the Cross to
encounter Christ deep down
inside in all my weaknesses
and sins and vulnerabilities
because transformation happens
only from within.
Teach us, dear God,
to imitate Jesus in emptying
ourselves to have a space for others
who are like us, weak and lost,
needing you and one another
to rise as better persons by
forming a community, of establishing
relationships that acknowledge you
truly as the Emmanuel, God-with-us;
how can we be raised up, O Lord,
if we are all "up" in our false selves,
false relationships and false securities?
Jesus said to Nicodemus,
"No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down
from heaven, the Son of Man.
For God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him
might not perish but might have
eternal life" (John 3:13,16).
Empty us. dear Jesus,
of our pride and fill us
with your humility, justice
and love by joyfully
taking our cross
and being one
with you in your people.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in the Twenty-Fourth Week of Ordinary Time, 12 September 2022
1 Corinthians 11:17-26, 33 ><)))*> + <*(((>< ><)))*> + <*(((>< Luke 7:1-10
Photo by author, 2018.
On this blessed Monday
after a weekend of heavy rains
and thunderstorms, I pray dear
Lord Jesus for those dearest to
me, the persons I value for they
have all showed me a glimpse of
your goodness and kindness;
most of all, it was from them that I
have experienced your love and care.
When Jesus had finished all his words to the people, he entered Capernaum. A centurion there had a slave who was ill and about to die, and he was valuable to him.
Luke 7:1-2
How touching,
lovely, and so sweet Luke's
opening lines for today's gospel:
of how a gentile military officer
valued a slave, asking for
representation to Jesus for a much
needed healing, because "he was
valuable to him."
How lovely as the story went on
when the centurion declared those
very words we also pray before
receiving you, Jesus, in Holy Communion:
"Lord, I am not worthy that you should
enter under my roof, but only say the word
and I shall be healed" (Lk.7:6).
So true, indeed, when we have deep faith
in you, dear Jesus, like that centurion, we
would surely have great love for others;
it is in this deep faith in you, O Lord
who is most present with us in the Eucharist
that we pray for the healing of our loved ones,
those we value most of their sickness
not only in body but also in mind, heart and soul;
deepen and strengthen their faith in you,
keep their hopes alive in you always
despite the pains and fears within them.
O dear Jesus,
may we truly be Eucharistic
in our lives, valuing every person
especially those going through
sufferings and difficulties these
days so that "as often as we eat this
bread and drink this cup, we may
proclaim your death Lord until
you come again" (1 Cor.11:26).
Amen.
Photo by Ka Ruben of the Parish of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima.
Lawiswis Ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-8 ng Setyembre 2022
Kapistahan ng Pagsilang ng Mahal na Birheng Maria, Ina ng Diyos
Larawan kuha ng may-akda, 2019.
O Diyos Amang mapagmahal sa amin,
kay sarap isipin at namnamin pagdiriwang
ng pagsilang ng Mahal na Birheng Maria
na Ina ni Hesus at Ina din namin.
Sa unang tingin marahil tatanungin
bakit ang kuwento sa ebanghelyo ay pagsilang ng Kristo?
Ngunit sa dakilang karunungan po Ninyo, O Diyos Ama
dito Mo ibinalot kagandahan at kabutihan
hindi lamang ng kapistahan
kungdi ng katotohanang hatid nito:
Dumating si Hesus na Anak Mo sa pamamagitan
ng dalawang mabubuting tao ayon sa plano at kalooban Mo:
si Jose na mula sa angkan ni David
na lahi ni Abraham
naging kabiyak ng puso ni Maria
na siyang Ina ng tinatawag naming Kristo.
Alam nating sa lahat ng bagay, ang Diyos ay gumagawang kasama ang mga nagmamahal sa kanya, ang mga tinawag ayon sa kanyang panukala, sa kanilang ikabubuti. Sapagkat sa mula’t mula pa’y alam na ng Diyos kung sino ang sa kanya; At ang mga itinalaga niya noong una pa ay kanyang tinawag. Ang mga tinawag niya ay kanya ring pinawalang-sala, at ang kanyang mga pinawalang-sala ay kanya namang binigyan ng karangalan.
Roma 8:28-29, 30
Walang pa-chamba-chamba
sa Iyo, O Diyos naming Ama
katulad ng sulat ni San Pablo sa mga taga-Roma:
bahagi ng iyong dakilang plano ang aming
pagsilang at pagparito upang tawagin at piliin
kay Kristo na pumarito din ayon sa iyong plano;
kaya naman aming dalangin,
matularan namin Mahal na Birheng Maria
sa pagiging masunurin si Kristo ay dalhin
at maibahagi sa mga namimighati at sawi;
higit sa lahat, nawa mahubog din kami
tulad ni Maria sa katauhan ni Kristo na anak niya
upang sa aming kapanatilihan
hatid niyang kaligtasan at kagalakan,
kagalingan at kaliwanagan
laging maranasan!
Maligayang kapistahan ng iyong pagsilang,
Mahal na Birheng Maria!
Salamat sa iyong pakikiisa sa plano ng Diyos
pati kami ngayon ay nalapit sa Kanya kay Kristo
na iyong isinilang at hindi ipinagkait kanino man;
Ipanalangin mo kami, Birheng Maria na aming Ina,
huwag mawalay bagkus patuloy na lumapit at kumapit
kay Jesus na aming kapatid;
katulad mo ay amin ding mahalin
at pahalagahan bawat buhay na kaloob ng Diyos Ama,
lalo na mga nasa pinakamahinang kalagayan
sa sinapupunan ng kanilang ina
at sa mga nasa katandaan at banig ng karamdaman.
Ngayong panahon pa rin ng pandemya
aming hiling pa rin ang iyong mga panalangin
Mahal naming Ina, kami ay laging pagpalain!
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time, Year II, 07 September 2022
1 Corinthians 7:25-31 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Luke 6:20-26
Photo by author, Makati skyline from Antipolo, 12 August 2022.
Thank you,
God our loving Father,
for this brand-new day;
in a few days, the week will
be over again as we move
closer to another week,
to another month,
and on to another year!
There is no denying that the world
indeed is passing away as St. Paul
reminds us today in the first reading:
I tell you, brothers, the time is running out. From now on, let those having wives act as not having them, those weeping as not weeping, those rejoicing as not rejoicing, those buying as not owning, those using the world as not using it. For the world in its present form is passing away.
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Like what the psalmist
says today, let me listen to you,
dear God, let me see and bend
my ear to experience and realize
that far more better than this life is
heaven awaiting us where we shall
enjoy your presence eternally!
Let us be on guard against that
great temptation that there is still time,
that we have plenty of time to spare,
not realizing that it is not really time that
passes by but us who are passing by
when we live in lavish wealth and luxury,
when we eat and drink without satiety,
when we laugh unmindful of the miseries
around us, and when we relish and enjoy
the accolades and praises of others.
Grant us the grace and courage
to choose you always in Jesus Christ
who had come to us as poor and hungry,
weeping and hated by everyone,
insulted and denounced for standing for
what is true and good.
Lord, let us see in every
beginning the end of our lives
in you. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C, 04 September 2022
Wisdom 9:13-18 ><}}}}*> Philemon 9-10 ><}}}}*> Luke 14:25-33
Photo by Mr. Lorenzo Atienza, 12 June 2019, Malolos Cathedral Basilica.
One of the most moving parts of the rite of ordination to the priesthood as well at profession of vows by nuns is when they prostrate in front of the church altar to signify their total conviction and commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.
What a beautiful image of the nature and essence of discipleship requiring great sacrifices to faithfully persevere to the end in Jesus who is always the highest priority of our lives, not only of priests and religious but lay people alike for we are all called to a life of holiness.
We find this conviction and commitment to Jesus in Paul’s own experience while in prison when the slave of his friend Philemon named Onesimus fled to seek refuge in him and eventually converted into Christianity.
Conformity and fidelity to the gospel
is beyond morality
because it is an adherence
to the person of Jesus Christ.
It must have been a difficult situation for Paul if found harboring a runaway slave, Onesimus, who in turn could face death as punishment for his act. Remember that slavery was normal during Paul’s time and even if he did not preach directly against its institution, here in this short powerful letter of just 25 verses he planted the seeds for its destruction when he stressed that Onesimus is Philemon’s “brother in the Lord”.
Photo by Dr. Mylene A. Santos, MD at Katmon Harbor nature Sanctuary, Infanta, Quezon, 29 August 2022.
Perhaps this is why he was away from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a brother, beloved especially to me, but even more so to you, as a man and in the Lord. So if you regard me as a partner, welcome him as you would me.
Philemon 15-17
Many times in life, we realize that fidelity to the gospel can be entirely unreasonable like when we have to be like Philemon whom Paul had asked to believe in the sincerity of the conversion of Onesimus his slave when it seemed to be more of convenience or merely circumstantial. Most of all, how could we receive another as a “beloved brother in the Lord” to whom we owe nothing at all when in fact who had hurt us in the first place! Conformity and fidelity to the gospel is beyond morality because it is an adherence to the person of Jesus Christ, of our communion with him and in him as his disciples.
Are we willing to go that far, of leaving everything behind, even our loved ones, our very selves for Jesus like what the gospel asks us today?
Great crowds were traveling with Jesus, and he turned and addressed them, “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”
Luke 14:25-27
Photo by author, Stations of the Cross, Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Chapel, SM Grand Central, Caloocan City, June 2022.
It is already September and we have only about 12 weeks to go before closing this liturgical year to prepare for Christmas with the Advent Season. Jesus is fast approaching Jerusalem and great crowds were already following him.
However, Jesus was very much aware too of the mixed crowd following him where many were simply curious, some were interested, still searching for more proofs perhaps while a few of them were already committed.
How about us today?
See how Luke presented Jesus resolutely journeying to Jerusalem when he turned to face the crowd that includes us today to issue two important lessons about discipleship, hating those dearest to us including our very selves and, second, carrying our cross.
There comes a time in our lives
when the only explanation,
the only justification,
and the only reason
why we do something unthinkable
even foolish is because of Jesus Christ.
Jesus is not asking us to literally hate our family and friends or even our very selves; the word hate in this passage refers more to action than emotion, of doing something that others would surely hate like when we do not give in to their requests to support them in a lie or something not fair and just, or simply sinful and evil. We have experienced how it is actually more difficult to being good Christians doing God’s will, doing what is right and good that are exactly not what our family and friends are doing and would want us to also do. And that is why, when we do not go with them and their whims and caprices, they think we “hate” them.
Following Jesus means putting him first always, even above our loved ones that they always misinterpret as our lack of love and concern for them.
But more difficult than that is hating our very selves, doing a Philemon for the many Onesimus in our lives. There comes a time in our lives when the only explanation, the only justification, and the only reason why we do something unthinkable even foolish is because of Jesus Christ. And that is when we have to hate our selves like when we forgo vengeance, let go of some debts, forget all about technicalities and legalities because we love Jesus. It is really foolish by world standards that sometimes one comes to hate one’s self too for letting go and letting God.
Photo by author, detail of Seventh Station of the Cross in the Parish of San Ildefonso, Tanay, Rizal with a man wearing shades, January 2021.
Meanwhile, to carry one’s cross is more than patiently accepting our human conditions of suffering and sickness, weakness and trials in life. This understanding of carrying one’s cross implies passivity as if the difficulty we are into is something that just happened and fell on our lap or shoulder that we simply have to accept them in the name of Christ.
That is very good and highly commendable but, Jesus wants a more active participation from us. To carry one’s cross is to voluntarily choose and accept a difficulty in life as a direct consequence of our conviction in and commitment to Jesus Christ our Lord and Teacher!
This is the reason Jesus presented us with two parables after sounding his call to discipleship, that one of building a tower and of a general going to war. The two men in these parables had to calculate the cost of their efforts, of how much they have to sacrifice and give to be successful in their endeavors lest they become laughing stocks in the community. The same is true with each one of us today as disciples of Jesus.
“In the same way, anyone of you who does not renounce his possession cannot be my disciple.”
Luke 14:33
Of course, Jesus gives us the grace to become good disciples but grace builds on nature; how much are we willing to sacrifice, to renounce even our very selves to truly follow Jesus through and through?
Kaya mo ba?
Photo from gettyimages.com.
Discipleship in Christ is being devoted to him in the same manner he is devoted to the Father toward whom he is drawing us. There is no other Way but Jesus alone. Therefore, to be his disciple means to prefer nothing to Christ who is our very life, our being, our end.
There is no room for mediocrity in being his disciple. We have seen in history and in our very lives how superficial discipleship had caused more damages to the Church and to each one of us when we fail to be committed to our calls. Despite our long years of seminary formation, many of us priests miserably fail in our discipleship with the many scandals that plague the Church these days, not to mention the endless complaints by people of how their pastors do not prepare homilies nor celebrate Mass daily and worst, refuse to answer sick calls! On the other hand, many families and most especially children have been destroyed by the separations of many couples who have refused to learn of letting go of themselves to let God work in their relationships. Then, there are the siblings who fight simply because they cannot let go of their principles and egos and wealth that matter most to them than their brother or sister, or even parents!
This Sunday, let us pray for God’s counsels, for the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit as expressed in the first reading from the Book of Wisdom so we may not simply know what is good but most of all lead holy lives by experiencing God daily as his disciples. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the Twenty-second Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 31 August 2022
1 Corinthians 3:1-9 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Luke 4:38-44
Praise and glory to you,
God our loving Father for this
last day of August; in a few
hours at midnight we shall
move into the -ber months with
September first;
but most of all, praise and glory
to you, dear God, for the gift of
your Spirit in us that we often
fail to recognize and nurture
as your most wondrous gift to us.
Too often, we mistake our being
religious with being spiritual when
we measure our relationship with
you in terms of what we do for you
which is religiosity, forgetting that what
matters most is our response to
the things you have done for us,
inviting us into a communion,
a relationship which is what spirituality
is all about;
like the people of Corinth in the time
of St. Paul, what we see more are your
ministers and practices, forgetting all
about you, our Lord and God!
What is Apollos, after all, and what is Paul? Ministers through whom you became believers, just as the Lord assigned each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive wages in proportion to his labor. For we are God’s co-worker; you are God’s field, God’s building.
1 Corinthians 3:5-9
Dearest Jesus Christ,
you have come to bring us closer
to God our Father; you became
like us in everything except sin,
experiencing even death so that we
may rise in you into new life, new
relationships with God and others;
let us realize like the apostles who
interceded for your healing of
Simon's mother-in-law that there alone
is one God above us all with whom is all
our being as origin and end; help us
realize too that like you, we have to
move to other places, to go and see
others to experience and know God
our Father, for he alone matters most
in this life. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C, 28 August 2022
Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29 ><}}}*> Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24 ><}}}*> Luke 14:1, 7-14
Photo by author, Ubihan Island, Meycauayan City, 31 December 2021.
Sometimes I feel life in the Philippines is a daily game of musical chair with each of us trying to secure our favorite seats in the bus or jeepney or train, in the classroom, in the church, in the restaurant. Everywhere.
And the favorite seats are always the ones at the back of the room most especially in churches and those nearest the door like in buses and jeepneys.
Most funny of all is when you find our kababayan in airports here and abroad rushing to board the plane as if they would not find a seat already paid for!
All because we put too much premium on our seats that mean power and control, even prestige although no one among us would admit it. In fact, our usual excuse of being seated at the back is due to shyness which is not true at all! More truthful is the fact that too often, we choose our seats for personal convenience that seats are everything for us.
But, unknown to many of us, what truly matters most in life, in being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not where we sit but where we stand which is the gist of our gospel this Sunday.
On a Sabbath, Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table.
Luke 14:1,7
Photo by Ezra Acayan/Getty Images, Baclaran Church, 09 February 2020.
See how Luke had briefly compressed in his opening lines for this Sunday’s gospel the gravity of Christ’s teachings today about discipleship. Setting was the most important day of the week for the Jews, the Sabbath, celebrated right in the house of a leading Pharisee.
Wow! It must had been a big party with all the “who’s who” that everybody was trying to get a piece of the action with all eyes on Jesus being observed carefully.
But, why?
To impress him? To be closer to him? To test him as most often would happen with him when in a gathering of people?
I find the scene overloaded with meanings that concern us when unconsciously we also “closely observe Jesus” whenever we would pray and celebrate the Sunday Mass in our parishes. There are times we forget God in our prayers as we are so preoccupied with our very selves, so focused and even insistent on what we believe and hold on to whatever we are asking from him. The “me, me, me” and “I, I, I” attitudes of being right, of being good, of being deserving and of course, entitled. Hence, the confiteor and kyrie are merely recited just for the sake of saying we are sorry for our sins even if we do not really mean them because so often, many are either late or do not examine their consciences.
Photo by author, Parish of San Pedro Calungsod, Sumulong Highway, Antipolo City, 12 August 2022.
Luke seems to be having some shades of humor when he noted how the “people carefully observed Jesus” at the dinner without them realizing the Lord himself had already and easily unmasked their pretensions and true characters of choosing the places of honor at the dinner that he had to tell them a parable about choosing the lowest seat!
When we come to the Lord most especially at prayer and the Mass, or even to a party and dinner for that matter, our main attitude must be of humility; to be invited to any party is an indication of our special relationship with the host. Multiply this to the highest degree in coming to the Holy Mass and simple prayer because it is God who gives us the grace to come to him, who values so much our relationship as Father and beloved children.
That is the point of Ben Sirach in the first reading, tenderly addressing the reader “My child, conduct your affairs with humility” (Sir.3:17), indicative of a relationship.
Every Sunday Mass is a banquet of the Lord like that Sabbath dinner Jesus attended in the gospel. No need to choose our places of honor because we are already honored by Jesus to celebrate “in him, with him and through him”. It is the very reason why we must celebrate Mass every Sunday as good, practicing Catholics.
Photo by author, Parish of San Pedro Calungsod, Sumulong Highway, Antipolo City, 12 August 2022.
Prayer and Mass are moments we strip ourselves naked before God who welcomes us to come near him even before we say sorry for our sins, even if we are not worthy of being in his presence at all. Recall the story of the calling of Nathanael or St. Bartholomew the Apostle last Wednesday; like him, Jesus had already seen and known us with joy long before we have approached him!
Every prayer moment, every Eucharistic celebration like a banquet on a Sabbath Jesus attended in the gospel today is an occasion for us to be truthful and sincere, to be our true selves, to be humble. St. Teresa of Avila said that “humility is walking in truth.” Just be yourself before God.
That is why Jesus said, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Lk.14:11). In the end, when we die, we shall all be placed in our proper places before God; hence, the need for us to be humble and sincere with who we really are. Do not try to be somebody else not you because God knows everything, even the hair on our heads.
Then he said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends, or your brothers or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Luke 14:12-14
Photo by author, Parish of San Pedro Calungsod, Sumulong Highway, Antipolo City, 12 August 2022.
The first parable was addressed by Jesus to the guests while this second parable was meant for the host; however, both parables are meant for us all who are all guests of God in this big banquet called life that leads to eternity.
First of all, just be our true and best selves in prayers and in life for we are all honored in Jesus Christ as God’s beloved children.
And if we live and act like Jesus our Host making him the most important guest in our hearts, then our hearts become big enough to welcome everyone, especially “the crippled, the lame, the blind”, making us inclusive like Jesus himself and not exclusive as our seating arrangements would often reveal.
The right attitude in being a guest and a host in this life is to imitate God in the responsorial psalm “who made a home for the poor”, of being like Jesus welcoming everyone with love and kindness, mercy and forgiveness, care and understanding.
Again, the author of the Letter to the Hebrews beautifully reminds us today in the second reading that the ultimate goal of our Christian life is communion with God that starts here in this life on earth. Every Mass is a “dress rehearsal” of our entrance into heaven because
Brothers and sisters: You have not approached that which cold be touched and a blazing fire and gloomy and darkness… No, you have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem… and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven… and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel.
Hebrews 12:18, 22, 23, 24
Photo by author, Makati skyline from Antipolo City, 13 August 2022.
My dear fellow journeyers in Christ, the blessedness of this Sunday shows us how fast time flies, that in a few days, it would be September, the beginning of the -ber months, the approaching Christ the King celebration to close our liturgical calendar.
Before thinking of Advent and Christmas, we are reminded today of “Jesus resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem” (Lk.9:51, 13th Sunday, June 26, 2022) to face his Passion, Death, and Resurrection. Along the way are invitations to join him too in banquets; let us not seek the seats of honor but instead be firm in making our stand for Jesus on the Cross by being loving and merciful like him. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Twenty-first Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 26 August 2022
1 Corinthians 1:17-25 ><]]]'> + ><]]]'> + ><]]]'> Matthew 25:1-13
Photo by Arch. Philip Santiago, Lourdes, France, 2015.
Praise and glory to you,
God our Father for this weekend;
we have passed a week of many discomforts
from the opening of classes,
followed by a strong typhoon,
a weak market and economy
marred by all kinds of shortages
but, here we are, Lord, still alive,
still well amid all the sufferings
and trials because of your gift of
FAITH.
Thank you, dear God, for this
wondrous gift of FAITH brought
to us, sustained in us, made beloved
in us by your Son Jesus Christ
in his Cross.
For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but for those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
1 Corinthian 1:22-25
Many times, we take our faith
for granted without realizing it is
one of your most important gifts
to us; it is in faith where everything
in this life begins: we cannot hope,
we cannot love if we do not believe!
And this faith as gift has come to us,
continues to be poured upon us
by its most beautiful sign, the CROSS.
Teach us to be wiser, dear Jesus,
like those virgins in your parable,
to embrace and love your CROSS;
it is not all suffering and pain but
gain and addition in life of more
wisdom and more power so that we
can be more loving and merciful,
kind and forgiving, generous and caring
in your most Holy Name.
Amen.
lordmychef.com 