Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church, 25 May 2026
Acts 1:12-14     ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*>     John 19:25-34

Praise and glory to you,
God our loving Father
in bringing us this far:
it is almost June, 
half-way through 2026
as we begin Ordinary Time 
with the closing of Easter Season
yesterday, Pentecost Sunday;
thank you most of all 
to Jesus Your Son now seated
at Your right in heaven
in giving us His Mother
the Blessed Virgin Mary
whom we honor this Monday
as Mother of the Church.

From the very beginning,
from His birth to His public ministry
until His Crucifixion,
Mary has always been with Jesus
so that when He sent the Holy Spirit
as He had promised on that Pentecost Sunday
in Jerusalem, Mary was present with
the 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 image 
of the church on its very first day,
as Your Body, O Lord Jesus,
gathered in prayer with Mary
Your Mother whom You have entrusted
to 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).

As we resume today
Ordinary Time,
may we imitate Mary
Your Mother, O Lord Jesus,
in being a faithful disciple,
open to welcome
and accept You,
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 Your Mother,
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,
appearing many times like
in Fatima, Portugal in 1917
to remind us to return to you,
Lord Jesus Christ;
let us be like Mary
in her discipleship that
is essentially 
a prayer life.
Amen.