The Lord Is My Chef Breakfast Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Holy Saturday, 30 March 2024
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 20 March 2024.
Teach us to be silent today, God our Father, as we remember your Son Jesus Christ’s Great Silence – Magnum Silentium – when he was “crucified, died and was buried; he descended to the dead and on the third day he rose again.”
On this Holy Saturday, your whole creation comes to full circle. In the beginning, after completing your work of creation, you rested on the seventh day and made it holy (Gen.2:3).
On the seventh day after completing his mission here on earth, Jesus Christ was laid to rest.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 19 March 2024.
Silence and rest always go together.
Let us realize, Father, that to be silent is not merely to be quiet but to listen more to Your voice coming from the depths of our being; hence, silence is not emptiness but fullness with You, dear God. It is in silence where we truly discover our selves and others too.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 20 March 2024.
Likewise, to rest is not merely to stop work nor stop from being busy; we rest to reconnect with You to be filled with your Holy Spirit.
You do not rest, O God, because you never get tired; it is us who need to rest so we may continue Your work of creation and, now of redemption and renewal by Jesus Christ.
When we rest, we return to Eden, like the garden where Jesus was buried:
“Now in the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had yet been buried. So they laid Jesus there because of the Jewish preparation day; for the tomb was close by”(Jn. 19:41-42).
John 19:41-42
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 20 March 2024.
How beautiful is that image, dear Father, of Your rest and silence in Eden and of Jesus laid to rest at a tomb in a garden: to rest in silence is therefore when we stop playing God as we return to You as Your image and likeness again!
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 20 March 2024.
God, we are afraid of silence because we are also afraid of the truth, of trusting You; Jesus was crucified because we have always been afraid to trust You and be truthful to You and ourselves.
Teach us to be like the women who rested on the sabbath when Jesus was laid to rest; like them, may we trust You more by being true to ourselves.
The women who had come from Galilee with him followed behind, and when they had seen the tomb and the way in which his body was laid in it, they returned and prepared spices and perfumed oils. Then they rested on the sabbath according to the commandment.
Luke 23:55-56
May your silence and rest reassure us that we shall rise with you again. Amen.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, 20 March 2024.
40 Shades of Lent by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the BVM, 19 March 2024 2 Samuel 7:4-5, 12-14, 16 ><}}}*> Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22 ><}}}*> Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2023.
How lovely, O God our Father that after reflecting yesterday on connections and reconnecting,* we celebrate today the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the most chaste spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary who gave the name Jesus to your Son in fulfillment of your promise to David; always regarded not only as chaste but most of all with gifted with the virtue of silence the world needs so badly these days, St. Joseph witnessed in his holy life that it is in silence when we make the strongest connections with one's self, with others, and with you, O God because silence is the domain of trust; The most trusting people like St. Joseph are also the most trusting.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream…
Matthew 1:19-20
In this world so filled with many voices including those spoken by machines and robots that compete for our attention, the more we have become fearful of silence because we are afraid of the truth!
To be silent is to be truthful like St. Joseph who embraced and welcomed the whole truth, Jesus Christ; grant us the same grace, Lord, you gave St. Joseph to silently in face and embrace the truth that can be discomforting especially when it it is contrary to our plans and desires; let us not hide in silence our festering anger that sooner or later may explode that could scatter all our plans and relationships. Amen.
St. Joseph, pray for us!
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2023.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday in the Fourth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 29 January 2024 2 Samuel 15:13-14, 30; 16:5-13 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Mark 5:1-20
An illustration of the healing of the Gerasenes demoniac from Pinterest.
On this final week of January as we approach in two weeks the Season of Lent, you teach us today, dear Father with many lessons about "facing" evil; at first, I felt evil is always "confronted", something we always fight head on but from the two readings today, your words tell me O Lord there are times we just have to stand firm against evil without necessarily fighting it out right away but not condoning it either.
But the king replied: ”What business is it of mine or of yours, sons of Zeruiah, that he curses? Suppose the Lord has told him to curse David; who then will dare say to, ‘Why are you doing this'” Then the king said to Abishai and to all his servants: ”If my own son, who came forth from loins, is seeking my life, how much more might this Benjaminite to do! Let him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him to. Perhaps the Lord will look upon my affliction and mae it up to me with benefits for the curses he is uttering this day.”
2 Samuel 16:10-12
Give me, O God, the same patience of David to accept the evils happening to me as I am guilty of so many evils too; like David, let me be mindful always of my own evil ways and sins that definitely will haunt me, will chase me, and will charge me later in recompense for my own sins too. There are times, Lord, that I must accept how I deserve some evil to befall me as a result of my own sinfulness like David.
If ever the evils that come to me are undeserved, keep my cool and patience, as well as goodwill like Jesus Christ your Son and our Lord; after healing the Gerasenes demoniac, he was driven out from the town by the people; many times, people do not understand anything at all when evils befall us and others; maintain my peace within me, Lord, that I may not react against my accusers like you especially when they all get it wrong; let me tower over everyone else with firm faith in you, dignity in silence, and clear conscience when people wrongly accuse me of deeds I am not guilty of for you alone is my salvation. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday in the First Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Ambrose, 07 December 2023 Isaiah 26:1-6 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Matthew 7:21, 24-27
Photo by author, San Fernando, Pampanga, November 2021.
Unlike Lent, this Season of Advent is always superseded by too much ado and noise of commercialism as Christmas approaches; there is hardly a hint not even among us in the church of the need to be silent, of the value of silence, and essence of silence in life no matter what is the season.
Although our first reading evokes in us a great feeling of joyful celebrations following the salvation of people, there is still the underlying tone of silence in you and with you, dear God our loving Father, of silent witnessing to your justice and righteousness.
How lovely that today we also celebrate the Memorial of St. Ambrose, a great bishop and Doctor of the Church whom St. Augustine deeply admired and converted him to Christianity; may we appreciate like St. Augustine the silence of St. Ambrose:
When [Ambrose] read, his eyes scanned the page and his heart sought out the meaning, but his voice was silent and his tongue was still. Anyone could approach him freely and guests were not commonly announced, so that often, when we came to visit him, we found him reading like this in silence, for he never read aloud.
Confessions of St. Augustine
At that time, knowledgeable and learned people read aloud for everyone to be aware of their presence but not St. Ambrose who deeply moved St. Augustine to notice it in his Confessions.
This Advent, teach us O Lord to cultivate the discipline and virtue of silence, especially in doing what is good, in witnessing Jesus Christ who warned us, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven" (Matthew 7:21).
May our deeds speak louder than our words and beliefs. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Memorial of the Presentation of Mary, 21 November 2023
Revelation 11:19a, 12:1-6a, 10ab <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 1:39-47
On this Memorial of the
Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
in the temple, we pray, O God,
you make us presentable too
before you like our Blessed Mother.
The words presentation
and presentable connote
things of beauty on the outside:
a presentation can be a show
like a play or a dance
while to be presentable means
to be pleasing to the eyes.
But deep its external connotations
is its inner meaning with
religious roots actually,
like to be dedicated as
being good and beneficial
to you, O God.
Like the Blessed Mother Mary,
teach us to present ourselves wholly
to you, dear God, by believing
in you and your words,
to have that firm faith on what is
not seen and sure or certain,
not carried away by all those
fancy and make-believe
images and promises of the world
based on superficialities
of materialism and consumerism.
In this age when fame and wealth
are the measure of what is good,
may we always choose true blessedness
like Mary who believed your words
would be fulfilled;
in this age when everyone prefers
to listen to outside noise and sounds
especially of media, may we always
choose to be silent like Mary,
listening to your voice O God within,
contemplating on its meaning;
in this age with so many false idols
being followed or with everyone
playing god, may we have the courage
and humility of Mary
to always be with Jesus,
never abandoning him even at the Cross,
standing by his side,
choosing to love and sacrifice,
to bear than complain,
to witness your mercy and majesty,
to be your presence and peace.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Religious, 03 November 2023
Romans 9:1-5 ><))))*> + <*((((>< Luke 14:1-6
Photo by author, Camp John Hay, 12 July 2023.
Silence is your language,
God our loving Father;
hence, silence is fullness,
not emptiness;
silence is when we listen
to every sound to discern
and follow your voice within
because silence is within
not without.
How sad that people these days
are afraid of silence,
afraid of listening to your voice
that speaks what is true, good,
and beautiful;
that is why we muffle our ears
with pods and plugs and phones
not to hear your voice coming
from the silent screams and cries
of the sick and suffering;
forgive us, Father, when
we become silent for the wrong reason
of being empty and non-committed,
when we prefer not to speak nor
make a stand in moments we have to
respond to your voice,
remaining silent to ignore
you and those in pain.
Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and the Pharisees in reply, asking, “Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?” But they kept silent; so he took the man and, after he had healed him, dismissed him.
Luke 14:3-4
Lord Jesus Christ,
so many people especially
children and women are dying
these days while the world remains
silent of the atrocities and killings going on;
like St. Paul in the first reading,
"we have great sorrow and constant
anguish in our hearts" (Romans 9:2);
disturb our empty silence with your
voice and plans to alleviate
the sufferings of those caught
in firefights and hostilities;
do not let our silence be empty
but be filled with you
and your courage and strength
to stand for the value of every life
like St. Martin de Porres who worked
in silence, lived in silence as he silently
listened and obeyed your voice
O Lord.
Amen.
Quiet Storm by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, 31 October 2023
Whether you choose to celebrate Halloween in its truest sense which is the Christian and sacred celebration of All Saints or, the popular and pagan manner that is scary or spooky, November first reminds us always of things that are hidden and not seen.
What is really scary whenever November first approaches is the insistence of so many benighted souls including many Christians who highlight the erroneous pagan practice of dressing evil when halloween literally means “hallowed eve” or “holy evening” before the day set aside for all “holy souls” already in heaven we call “saints”. Any soul who enters heaven is considered a “saint”, that is, holy even if not recognized or canonized by the Church.
Remember the old Our Father translation when we used to say “Hallowed be thy name”? That’s it! Hallowed is the old English for holy. Where people got that idea of halloween as evil is clearly from the devil! And part of that sinister ploy by the devil in making evil funny and acceptable – and visible – is happening in the social media where everything must be seen, shown and exposed. Notice the expression “as seen on TV” to sell and market products while Facebook users brag their rule of thumb “show pictures or it never happened”.
Not everything can be seen and must be seen and shown. Recall how Genesis portrayed Adam and Eve hiding in shame, covering themselves with leaves after eating the forbidden fruit but these days, which could be the second phase of the Fall, men and women are not ashamed at all of their sins and scandals that instead of hiding, they make known to everyone deeds better kept in private, saying words better kept unsaid. They have absolutized the truth, baring all in total disregard of persons’ dignity and unity of the community. We have lost decency because we have also lost our sense of hiddenness, of privacy through silence and stillness.
Photo by author, sunrise at the Pacific from Katmon Nature Sanctuary & Beach Resort in Infanta, Quezon, 04 March 2023.
Hiddenness is a sacred presence where each of us can be all by one’s self focused on God who is the root of our being and existence no matter how one may call Him. St. John Paul II said in one of his writings that God created man first to be alone with Him. And that is how it will be to each of us in the end: we die alone. With God.
We all have this gift of hiddenness within each one of us. This we experience in our desires to be still, to go to the mountains or anywhere for a retreat or introspection, for some “me” time to rediscover and find one’s self anew.
Hiddenness is the passageway to the great gifts of silence and stillness that everyone needs to maintain balance in this highly competitive world filled with so much noise where everybody is talking, including cars and elevators. Compounding the problem of noise within and outside us are the cameras everywhere that entertain us and safeguard our well-being. But, are we really safer these days with all the CCTV’s and Face ID’s we use?
From forbes.com.
Many times, we have actually stripped ourselves of the innate mystery of being human, of the beauty and gift of personhood that some have tried to reveal using the camera but failed because we are beyond seeing. We do not notice how the cameras actually rob us of respect when unconsciously we give ourselves away to the world with our photos and videos spreading far without our knowing. Worst, we have allowed the camera to invade our hiddenness without us realizing that its effects backfire to us as we rarely have the time to analyze the possible outcomes of our photos and videos that usually tend to show what is negative and bad than what is positive and good about us. Our fascination with cameras perfectly capture our Filipino term palabas that literally means “outward”, a mere show without substance inside (loob). As a result of these sounds and images saturating us daily, the more we have become confused and lost because we do not have our grounding or “bearing” found only in hiddenness.
“In our society we are inclined to avoid hiddenness. We want to be seen and acknowledged. We want to be useful to others and influence the course of events. But as we become visible and popular, we quickly grow dependent on people and their responses and easily lose touch with God, the true source of our being. Hiddenness is the place of purification. In hiddenness we find our true selves.”
Fr. Henri Nouwen
Photo by author, Anvaya Cove in Morong, Bataan, July 2023.
We need to regain our hallowed hiddenness if we wish to grow and mature truly as persons – emotionally, psychologically and spiritually. With the phone and TV always around us even in the church, everybody and everything has become so ordinary and cheap.
Regaining our hiddenness is learning to put our technology in its proper place to be grounded in God in silence, the one commodity that has become so scarce these days since the invention of the Sony Walkman more than 40 years ago that spawned all these gadgets all over us now.
Silence is the language of God which leads us to Him and to our true selves. Every communication by God is always preceded by silence, something we have refused to learn as the most basic requirement of every communication. No wonder, we quarrel a lot, ending up more confused than ever because we never listen to others in silence. We never dialogue but simply talk, talk, and talk.
Genesis tells us in the beginning when God created everything, there was silence before He said, “Let there be light” while the fourth gospel solemnly tells us, “In the beginning was the Word… And the Word became flesh” (Jn.1:1, 14). Both instances evoke the beauty and majesty of God in grand silence.
All books in the Old Testament especially those of Psalms and of Job teem with many instances of God in silence amid every sunrise and sunset, in the gentle breeze and vast skies and oceans. In the New Testament, all four evangelists reported nothing Jesus said and did in childhood until the age 30 except for his lost and finding in the temple when 12 years old; Jesus was totally silent all those “hidden years” of his life in preparation for his ministry that lasted only three years, accomplishing so much whereas we speak all our lives and still end up empty. Most of all, the evangelists tell us too how Jesus frequently invited his disciples to a deserted place to pray, be silent and rest to be in communion with God his Father.
Hiddenness is God’s mode of presence that cannot be captured nor described in human terms. That is why He is hidden. It is not that God is hiding from us but He is inviting us to be intimately close with Him to exclusively and personally experience Him, be filled with Him.
Photo by Ms. Jo Villafuerte in Atok, Benguet, 01 September 2019.
It was the same thing Jesus did on Easter, remaining hidden from the disciples. When he finally appeared to Mary Magdalene who tried to touch him, Jesus stopped her to signal to her and to us all of the new level of relating with the Risen Lord in hiddenness. In all Easter stories, we are told how the disciples fell silent whenever Jesus appeared to them. In Emmaus, after the breaking of bread, the two disciples finally recognized Jesus who immediately vanished too! Why? Because Jesus wanted his disciples including us today to follow him personally in his hiddenness to find him and ourselves too.
Appearances or images and noise in life are very fleeting. Very often, the most significant moments and insights we have in life are those that come from our long periods of silence, of prayers and soul-searching.
This November 1 and 2 as we remember all those who have left us in this world, let us keep its sacred origins: All Saints Day for those souls already in heaven and All Souls’ Day for those who have departed but still being purified in the purgatory. Both dates invite us to “hide” in prayers, in silent remembering to experience God and our departed loved ones in the most intimate and personal manner without the gadgets and things that numb us of their presence. Amen. Have a blessed All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days!
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Feast of St. John Marie Vianney, Patron of Priests, 04 August 2023
Leviticus 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34-37 ><}}}*> + <*{{{>< Matthew 13:54-58
Photo by author, Manila Cathedral Sacristy, 07 July 2023.
Praise and glory to you,
God our Father for the gift of
St. John Marie Vianney,
our Patron Saint,
your priests!
Oh what a glorious day
is this day falling on a
First Friday,
a day special to the
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus,
our Eternal Priest.
Thank you,
thank you,
thank you, Lord.
From the very start
as we have heard from
the Book of Leviticus
in the first reading,
you have set special
days of celebrations
to remember you and
your saving works;
at its service are
your priests.
Always.
But, no...
We are not the center
of your festivals, Lord,
but your mere servants;
how sad that since then
in the wilderness
down to your Temple
up to our own time
in these beautiful churches
we celebrate the Holy Mass,
we your priests have
consciously or unconsciously
turned attention and focus
onto ourselves.
Mea culpa, mea culpa,
mea maxima culpa!
Forgive us your priests
for playing God,
O merciful Father.
Help us to keep coming back
to Nazareth like your Son Jesus;
let us get lost in the hiddenness
and silence of Nazareth;
let us be at home with you
in the obscurity and nothingness
of Nazareth;
let us welcome too the
rejections of Nazareth
like Jesus our Eternal Priest.
In all these 25 years as a priest,
my prayer to you dear God
remains the same:
Lord, you have given me
with so much
and I have given you so little;
teach me to give more
of myself,
more of YOU.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday, Memorial of St. Benedict, Abbot, 11 July 2023
Genesis 32:23-33 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 9:32-38
Photo by author, Bolinao, Pangasinan, 19 April 2022.
Your words today, O God,
evoke of deep strength within us,
so powerful it can only come from
you to effect changes so radical,
shaking our very roots.
Jacob was left alone there. Then some man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When the man saw that he could not prevail over him, he struck Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the hip socket was wrenched as they wrestled. The man then said, “Let me go for it is daybreak.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” The man asked, “What is your name?” He answered, “Jacob.” Then the man said you shall no longer be spoken of as Jacob, but as Israel because you have contented with divine and human beings and have prevailed.”
Genesis 32:25-29
What a beautiful image of Jacob
wrestling with you, O Lord,
and prevailing over you not because
he was stronger nor you were weaker;
Jacob had always been so determined in life
and with your grace, unknown to him,
had always prevailed.
Very often, you do the same with us;
you invite us to wrestle with you
as our trainer to make us
stronger and more determined
and matured in prayers,
in openness,
in oneness and unity in you.
In the gospel, O God,
you have shown us in Jesus Christ
the same inner strength
when his heart was moved with pity
upon seeing the crowds who were
abandoned and troubled
like sheep without a shepherd (Mt.9:36);
it was more than a feeling,
a determination within Jesus
who had come to save us from sins
and bring us to fulfillment in him;
grant us the same grace,
to be moved with pity,
or literally, to stir our hearts
into concrete actions for
those lost and troubled.
Like St. Benedict whose feast
we celebrate today,
grant us the patience and perseverance
to draw that inner strength from you,
to wrestle with you in prayers,
to wrestle with the Sacred Scriptures
to hear you speak to us,
to wrestle with one's self to be still
and silent amid the world so wild
and noisy;
Jacob, Jesus, and Benedict
all were stirred deep within,
shaken to their very roots,
have all prevailed
in making this a better world
through ora et labora.
Amen.
40 Shades of Lent by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion, 02 April 2023
Isaiah 50:4-7 > + < Philippians 2:6-11 > + < Matthew 27:11-54
Photo by author, Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion 2019, Parokya ni San Juan Apostol at Ebanghelista, Bagbaguin, Sta. Maria, Bulacan.
We now enter the holiest week of the year, the height of our Lenten preparations for Easter. What we have today are two ancient celebrations merged by Vatican II in 1963: the blessing of palms practiced in Jerusalem as early as the fourth century and the papal tradition of proclaiming the very long gospel of the Lord’s Passion in Rome about year 500. Hence, the title “Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion”.
And it is a beautiful innovation in our liturgy showing us so many truths in our lives like we begin Holy Week with the triumphal entry of Jesus to Jerusalem, leading to the Holy Triduum of Passion and Death on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday into the bursting joy and glory on Easter.
That for me is life itself.
We come into this world in triumph like Jesus with everybody rejoicing with our birth until we grow up, going through a lot of pains and sufferings with little deaths right in the hands of those supposed to love us but always, there is the joy of maturity, of fulfillment in Christ with many Easter moments of triumphs and consolations. Today’s celebrations remind us that while there will always be the disappointing manifestations of sin and evil in life, overall, there is always the immense and immeasurable love of God expressed in Jesus Christ dying on the Cross.
“Ecce Homo” painting by Vicente Juan Masip (1507-1579) from masterapollon.com
Our gospel is very long even in its shorter version. Let us focus on the Lord’s silence from his arrest to His crucifixion.
The Lord God has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them. I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting. The Lord God is my help, therefore, I am not disgraced; I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
Isaiah 50:4, 6-7
Jesus is the fulfillment of the so-called Suffering Servant of God in the Book of Isaiah. What is striking is how he claims to have been given with a well-trained tongue but He rarely spoke when tried and crucified, choosing to be silent in the midst of great sufferings. What a great display of love for us!
In a world drowning in a cacophony of sounds and noise with everyone and everything speaking like elevators and cellphones, the more God is silent, waiting for us to stop and listen to Him in Jesus Christ who speaks within us. From Pilate to the soldiers to the Pharisees and priests with their rabid packs of demagogues who ceaselessly mocked Jesus even while slowly dying on the Cross, Jesus remained silent.
Because He loves us.
Because He waits for us to stop and listen.
Because life is more true and fulfilling in silence, not in sounds and noise.
Last Monday we celebrated the Feast of St. Joseph where we heard in the gospel how an angel told him to take Mary as wife with the specific task of naming her child “JESUS” which means “God saves”. See how God gave that specific mission to the most silent man in the Bible, St. Joseph who must have taught Jesus the value of silence!
That is how God saved us in Jesus by remaining silent even on the Cross. If ever He spoke, it was mostly to pray the psalms. In Jesus, God saves us in silence while we are in the din of noises of sin. Oh how we speak a lot these days against God, still putting Him on trial, blaming Him for all the problems and woes we have in our lives and in the world.
Photo by author, August 2020.
Like Pilate and the crowd with their religious leaders, we say a lot about God that are often not true but He never argued nor debated with us just like then because Jesus loves us, because His name means “God saves” and that was exactly the meaning of His silence.
How could be God so demanding as many would claim with His many words of instructions and commandments of things to do and not to do plus warnings against sin just to obey Him when He has always been silent?
Today we are reminded how we talk too much and accomplish so little, even nothing, while Jesus is silent because His name means “God saves”, witnessing it in fact in silent sufferings that was a scandal for many at that time.
Moreover, Jesus showed us today in His sufferings how silence is ultimately the expression of trust in God. When we are able to slow down and be silent in the face of many trials, that is a clear indication of our deep faith and trust in God. People who trust are the most silent because simply wait for their deliverance or salvation. Like Jesus Christ.
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:6-8
Photo by author, Betania-Tagaytay City, 2018.
More scandalous than the silence of Jesus Christ during His trial was His crucifixion, the supreme expression of His name’s meaning, “God saves”. See how since the fall of Adam and Eve, sin has always been an attempt by humans in becoming like God. There has always been that conscious or unconscious feeling of competition with God whom many see as controlling, manipulative and even power-hungry.
But right there on the Cross, Jesus showed us that indeed, in His very Person how God saves by utterly being weak and powerless.
God saves us in Jesus through the path of powerlessness and weakness, docility and humility, of simplicity before men and before His Father.
That is why even at His triumphal entrance to Jerusalem, He rode a lowly donkey never been used by anyone, a fulfillment of many Old Testament allusions and prophecies that “your king comes to you, meek and riding on an ass, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden (donkey)” (Mt. 21:5; Zech. 9:9). His triumphal entry into Jerusalem was the fulfillment of the words of God to his prophets, showing us that indeed, everything Jesus did and said were in accordance with the Father’s will, never on His own.
Photo by author, 2018.
Because His name Jesus means, “God saves”.
What is most beautiful in the reading earlier at the blessing of palms was how Matthew described the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem – exactly just like the coming of the wise men from the East!
And when he entered Jerusalem the whole city was shaken…
Matthew 21:10
Imagine how a very large crowd welcomed Jesus, spreading their cloaks on the road where He passed, chanting “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Mt.21:9).
Like when Jesus was born and Magis from the East came to Jerusalem inquiring about the newborn king of Israel, they were also shaken! And the irony then at His birth and at His triumphal entry, the learned have refused to recognize Him despite their having all the knowledge and writings available to them.
Is it not the same thing continues to happen to us in our lives, when despite all the kindness and mercy of God, we refuse to recognize His Son’s coming Jesu Christ including the salvation He had gained for us? Where have all the people gone on Sundays? Does God still matter to us? Do we not care at all whenever Jesus comes to us most especially in the Eucharist during the Sunday Mass?
Both the rites of the blessing of palms with the procession and the Mass on this Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion are not merely a recalling of a past event, but a making present, a re-membering of Jesus our King triumphantly coming daily – still in silence – to us in the simplicity of bread and wine to become His Body and Blood for us to offer and share in order to experience Him, our Resurrection and Life because His name means “God saves”.
In the Eucharist, Jesus comes to us as “God saves us”, fulfilling us, blessing us.
This Holy Week, especially at the Holy Triduum of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil, we are reminded of our task to witness to everyone the meaning of the name of Jesus, “God saves” by being present to Him in the Eucharist. Inside the church. With our family. Not in the beach nor a resort unmindful of history’s greatest moment when God saved us from sins by dying on the Cross. Amen. Please, have a meaningful Holy Week to experience the joy of Easter!
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