The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial of St. Augustine, Bishop & Doctor of the Church, 28 August 2024 2 Thessalonians 3:6-10, 16-18 <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> Matthew 23:27-32
Commuters hang from the back of a jeepney as it travels along a road in Manila, the Philippines, on Sunday, April 9, 2017. Photographer: Veejay Villafranca/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
Glory and praise to you, God our loving Father for the gift of this great Saint, Augustine, son of St. Monica, Bishop and Teacher of the Church; in him, O God, you showed us every saint has a sinful past and that no sinner can be denied of a saintly future.
It was St. Augustine who taught us among his so many teachings that "grace builds on nature" which he must have learned from his own experiences, from his conversion to Christianity to becoming a priest then a bishop that did not happen like a magic trick by God but with hard work wrapped in intense prayers by him and St. Monica; what a tremendous blessing that as we honor him today, our first is from a letter by his inspiration, St. Paul:
For you know how one must imitate us. For we did not act in a disorderly way among you, nor did we eat food received free from anyone. On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked, so as not to burden any of you. Not that we do not have the right. Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you, so that you might imitate us. In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat (2 Thessalonians 3:7-10).
Remind us, O God in Jesus Christ like St. Augustine, what is essential is the inside not the outside; let us not be like the Pharisees and scribes, hypocrites, looking like "whitewashed tombs that appear beautiful on then outside but inside are full of dead men's bones and every kind of filth" (Matthew 23:27).
Grant us the zeal and enthusiasm like St. Augustine to strive in becoming a better person, most of all a better Christian by working hard in cultivating the prayer life, love for the Sacred Scriptures so that Jesus may dwell always in our hearts. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B, 21 July 2024 Jeremiah 23:1-6 ><}}}}*> Ephesians 2:13-18 ><}}}}*> Mark 6:30-34
Photo by author, Katmon Nature Sanctuary &Beach Resort, Infanta, Quezon March 2023.
After being sent“two by two” last Sunday, the Apostles now return to Jesus, reporting “all they had done and taught.” What a beautiful gospel scene this Sunday, supposed to be our day of rest that begins in God and must be rooted in God.
The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place (Mark 6:30-32).
Last Sunday we were reminded to rediscover the family and friends sent with us “two by two” in this life while today the Lord wants us to be aware of our need to rest in order to rediscover Him first of all, then one’s self and others.
Unfortunately, many people today have entirely forgotten the meaning and importance of rest that we succumb to all kinds of sickness related with stress and fatigue. In fact, Filipino workers were recently ranked as the second worst in terms of work-life balance in a worldwide survey. One factor it cited is the lesser paid vacation leaves our workers have compared with their counterparts in other countries.
Photo by author, Sonnenberg Resort, Davao City, 2017.
Rest is not only stopping from work to be recharged like cellphone batteries; we are not things like robots and drones sent out simply for a task that once achieved, no more. We are inter-related persons meant to form bonds and unity, a family and a community. That is the result of our being sent on a mission to share God’s creative works leading to our union in Him with others.
God rested and made Sabbath holy after creation because He had completed all His works that were all good; we, on the other hand, merely participate in His creative works. That is why no matter how hard we push ourselves with our work, we can’t completely finish them as more things to do come along the way, making us bored or stressed out because we could no longer find life but simply routine. We have been so focused on accomplishing many things as if we are the savior of the world (messianic complex) that we feel so important, bloating our ego. That is when we start literally throwing our weight to those around us like in those reels of road rage. The sad part of this is how we eventually hurt the people we love and supposed to serve like the shepherds of the Old Testament that God through Jeremiah had accused to have “misled and scattered” the people of Israel (Jer.23:1).
Photo by author, border between Jordan and Israel, May 2019.
Today, Jesus is inviting us to “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while (Mk.6:31)” to remind us that in everything we do in this life, what matters most is not the task but us, the persons we love and care for, and Christ who is our only fulfillment in life.
Like the apostles, we have to return to Jesus precisely because our mission, our work is not ours but Christ’s. We need to return to Jesus every Sunday in the Eucharist when we are nourished by His words and strengthened by His Body and Blood to sustain us in our mission.
Rest is neither doing nothing like sleeping all day or doing anything we like that we forget God and in the process, our very self and others. Rest is a time of conversion when we lay aside our plans and agenda by returning to God so that we could have focus again in this life. Rest is actually to be filled with God, to be holy.
This we find expressed perfectly in our Filipino word for rest which is pahinga from the root hinga or breath that is spiritus in Latin. To rest in Filipino is mag-pa-hinga that literally means hingahan, to be breathed on. Genesis tells us how God breathed on man to be alive after creating him while in John’s Gospel we find Jesus breathed on His apostles after greeting them with peace twice on the night of Easter when He appeared to them at the Upper Room. From here we get that beautiful imagery of rest as being breathed on by God – mag-pa-hinga sa Diyos – which is to be closer with God!
Here now is the challenge and best part of the good news this Sunday: the more closer we get to God in Jesus and through Jesus especially on Sunday our day of rest, the more we must get closer with others. The more we pray, the more we rest in the Lord, the more we serve, the more we love.
Mark told us how Jesus invited the Twelve to “come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” but the people saw them and even got earlier to the other side of the lake!
When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd and he began to teach them many things (Mark 6:34).
Photo by author in the Holy Land, 2019.
Rest is more than the amount of time spent “resting” but the disposition to be with the Lord, to be one with Him that we become holy like Him. That moment when Jesus led the Twelve to rest was already a “rest” for Him that resulted in serving more the people who have followed them.
Jesus being moved with pity for the people indicated His rest and communion with the Father expressed in His oneness with the suffering people who were like sheep without a shepherd. Jesus has always been one with the Father right from the very start until His death on the Cross where He declared “It is finished” and commended His total self to the Father.
The truest sense of us having a real rest, of getting closer with God is when we get closer with others especially those entrusted to our love and care like our loved ones and those who are poor and sick.
Problem these days among us priests including laypeople is our wrong idea about rest; we do not really rest at all but simply indulge in pleasures that are many times scandalous for being godless and unmindful of other people. True rest makes our hearts natural to be aware of the sufferings of others, to be one with them or at least take their plight into consideration in our rest.
We can only say “mission accomplished” to rest when we are one with God through others that St. Paul explains in the second reading at how Jesus Christ reconciled us all through the Cross, “putting an enmity to death by it” (Eph. 2:16). Next Sunday, this we shall see when after teaching and healing the people in that deserted place, Jesus would feed the crowd of over 5000 people from just a few loaves of bread and pieces of fish.
Let us rest in the Lord to prepare our hearts and souls as well as our tired body to be filled with God so we can fill others too with Him. Let us pray:
Lord Jesus Christ, we live in a highly competitive world of 24/7 wherein everyone is so busy that we forget You and the persons You have entrusted to us; remind us we are not the Messiah nor a superhero to save the world; we can only do as much in this life as God had accomplished all for us in You, the Christ; let us take two or three even five steps backwards to let You, Jesus, do your work in us. Amen.
Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-01 ng Mayo 2024
Mga pasaherong nakasabit sa PUJ, kha ni Veejay Villafranca ng Bloomberg via Getty Images, Abril 2017.
(Isang tula aking nakatha sa inspirasyon ni Fr. Boyong sa pagninilay ng Araw ni San Jose, Manggagawa.)
Ngayong araw ng mga manggagawa ano nga ba aming ginagawa bilang halimbawa ng kabanalan at kabutihan sa paghahanap ng saysay at katuturan nitong buhay?
Kay saklap isipin walang kapagurang kayod ng karamihan habang kanilang sinusuyod alin mang landas maitaguyod lamang pamilyang walang ibang inaasahan, naghihintay masayaran mga bibig ng pagkaing kailangan di makapuno sa sikmurang kumakalam habang mga pari na nasa altar namumuwalan mga bibig sa lahat ng kainan at inuman, tila mga puso ay naging manhid sa kahirapan ng karamihan!
"Samahan mo kami, Father" sabi ng Sinodo na simula pa lamang ay ipinagkanulo nang paglaruan mga paksa sa usapan tinig at daing ng bayan ng Diyos hindi pinakinggan bagkus mga sariling interes at kapakanan, lalo na kaluguran siyang binantayan at tiniyak na mapangalagaan kaya si Father nanatili sa altar pinuntahan mayayaman silang pinakisamahan hinayaan mga kawan hanapin katuturan ng kanilang buhay.
Aba, napupuno kayo ng grasya mga pari ayaw na ng barya ibig ay puro pera at karangyaan mga pangako ay nakalimutan kahit mga kabalastugan papayagan puwedeng pag-usapan kung kaharap ay mayayaman pagbibigyan malinaw na kamalian alang-alang sa kapalit na ari-arian habang mga abang manggagawa wala nang mapagpilian kungdi pumalakpak at hangaan kaartehan at walang kabuluhang pananalita ni Father sa altar, kanyang bokasyon naging hanap-buhay.
San Jose, manggagawa ipanalangin mo aming mga pari maging tulad mo, simple at payak upang samahan aming mga manggagawa sa paghahanap ng kahulugan ng buhay kapiling nila. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday, Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker, 01 May 2024 Colossians 3:14-15, 17, 23-24 >>> + <<< Matthew 13:54-58
“Childhood of Christ” painting by Gerard von Honthorst, franciscanmedia.org.
Praise and glory to You, God our Father in entrusting Your Son Jesus Christ to the most noble and holiest of men, St. Joseph who came from the lineage of King David.
Though he never spoke a word in the Gospel, St. Joseph's obedience in doing everything as You had commanded him (Mt. 1:24) proved his being a model disciple too of Jesus like his wife, the Blessed Virgin Mary.
On this first day of May when we celebrate his memorial as St. Joseph the Worker, our beloved Patron shows us how family life is so sacred as part of Your Divine plan, O gracious Father in heaven.
St. Joseph worked as a carpenter, a provider to the Holy Family who must have also experienced every dad's problem of never making enough for Mary and Jesus; most likely, the Holy Family he headed did not live a perfect idyllic life, living through scandals and gossips as our gospel today showed when the people of Nazareth rejected the adult Jesus Christ, taking offense at him by asking, "Is he not the carpenter's son?" (Mt. 13:55, 57).
Photo by author, site of St. Joseph’s carpentry shop beneath St. Joseph’s Church in Nazareth, Israel, May 2017.
Dear God, grant us the same grace You gave St. Joseph who lived through scandal and gossip in a righteous way, just like what St. Paul had told us in the first reading, "And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection"; help us to be like St. Joseph who "let the peace of Christ controlled his heart" (Col.3:14-15) in everything to show us that holiness in life is not a poster card but one lived in the ambiguity and complexity of this world rooted in Jesus our Lord. Amen.
St. Joseph, Protector of the Child Jesus and Mary, Pray for us!
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
This is a long overdue prayer-reflection, a fruit of one of my prayer periods during that week leading to October first when the gospel was the parable of the two sons (26th Sunday in Ordinary Time).
Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people: “What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ He said in reply, ‘I will not,’ but afterwards he changed his mind and went. The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir’ but did not go.
Matthew 21:28-30
It was a Thursday, my day off I normally spend with a Holy Hour at the chapel of the PDDM Sisters at James Alberione Center in Araneta Ave., Quezon City. I usually present to God my Sunday homily every Thursday but that afternoon, I did not feel good. Maybe partly due to the weather that was so humid worsened by the afternoon drizzle. That was when I felt God telling me something about being “scattered” in life.
The word “scattered” has very picturesque translations in Filipino, sabog and kalat-kalat. Sabog is the direct translation of “scattered brain” or one who is disorganized and forgetful, could not think well clearly. Hence, sabog is also used to describe someone who is high on drugs or simply drunk and could not think seriously of everything. It came from the literal meaning of sabog which is an “explosion”.
Photo by author, summer 2021.
On the other hand, kalat-kalat means the same as sabog, could not think well because one is disorganized and messy, the literal meaning of kalat that may refer too to trash and dirt.
Many times we are like the two sons who were both scattered because their lives were not in order, both so concerned with one’s self, forgetting their father including their livelihood which is the vineyard. Many times in life, we get so focused with tasks and duties as well as obligations that we forget our relationships, forgetting the persons for whom our work are intended. That is why we also feel at a loss as we miss our bearings in life that are our relationships with God, with others and with one’s self.
Both sons indicated strained relations with their father. The elder son outrightly refused his father’s order because he did not see him that important, perhaps due to anger and resentments he harbored against him although deep down inside, he loves his father. That is why he was bothered by his conscience and later obeyed his father to work at their vineyard.
The younger son, on the other hand, was also scattered because his ego was so bloated in appearing so good to their father. He readily said yes to their father’s order just to look good before him but never fulfilled it because he never really had that deep love and respect for him.
Photo by author, 2022.
The first sign of being scattered, of being kalat-kalat is when we talk a lot that put us into trouble not necessarily with others but primarily with our self like the first son. We feel our inconsistencies and incongruence within ourselves with what we believe, what we know as right and good. We realize we are not walking our talk because of the great mess we are into, the mess around us like negative and other selfish thoughts that flood us. And all we wanted to do is to “pick up the pieces” of our selves, of our lives, and of our relationships. With God and with others.
Being scattered is something like a “soft depression” caused by burn out and lack of recreation and rest, a sign we have been losing grip of ourselves that we have to reassess anew our priorities and values in life. And always, the first person we forget is our very self as we get sickly, feel exhausted and tired easily, even grouchy and irritable for trivial even no apparent reasons at all.
First thing to do when we feel scattered is to naturally gather our self. Distance from our usual routine and people. Have that postponed medical check-up. And have quality “me time” like a movie or a short out-of-town vacation. We need to empty ourselves to be filled anew with God and his grace. Like Jesus, we need to go to a deserted place by ourselves, literally and figuratively speaking.
To gather one’s self is an invitation from God himself for more intense prayers to bond again in Jesus by laying aside all our plans and goals, forgetting all about ourselves even of others for a while to ask the Lord what he wants from us. It is easy to claim and convince ourselves what we are doing are for the Lord but the real thing necessary is that we simply do his works!
Christ had repeatedly said that “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters” (Lk. 11:23 or Mt. 12:30). If what we are doing are the works of the Lord, there will always be joy and fulfillment. Even despite difficulties and exhaustion.
Photo by author, 2022.
Overall, this feeling of being scattered is an invitation from God himself for us to put him back at the center of our lives and we start doing his works that are often simpler than what we envision and plan. Whenever there is this feeling of being scattered, I pray:
God our loving Father,
help me find my way back home
to you in Jesus your Son;
many times I talk too much,
even write a lot about you
and for you but often,
they are for me too
and against others;
help me, dear Father
in this mess and disorder;
when you created the world,
everything was in chaos;
breathed into me your
Holy Spirit
to make me alive again
in you and for you,
doing your work,
obeying your will
in the way you want it,
not mine.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle, 21 September 2023
Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Matthew 9:9-13
Photo by Mr. Virgie Ongleo in Singapore, 2021.
God our loving Father,
on this feast of your Son's
Apostle St. Matthew who used
to be known as Levi, a tax collector,
I pray for all the men and women
who work hard to provide food,
shelter, and clothing for their
families; through St. Matthew,
Jesus Christ had shown us
you love so dearly every working
man and woman who toil and labor
under the most harsh conditions
trying to earn a living.
As Jesus passed by, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him.
Matthew 9:9
St. John Chrysostom rightly
noticed how the gospels mentioned
the work of some Apostles called
by Jesus: Peter, James and John were
fishing while Matthew was collecting
taxes; oh how perceptive were the eyes
and tongue of St. John Chrysostom!
Because fishing was seen as a lowly job
during that time while the taxman was
the most despicable person for Jews
and yet, Jesus called them!
Lord Jesus,
grant your mercy and comfort,
consolation and help to all workers
so hard pressed in this life,
especially the forgotten who strive
to earn money decently like our
farmers and fishermen,
drivers and vendors,
maidservants and nannies
who working abroad
to care for other families as they
left their own families behind;
bless the cops and traffic enforcers,
our government workers
and officials who live in the darkness
of sin, trapped in the lures of wealth
and money; in calling St. Matthew,
Jesus showed us his daily passing
and calling of everyone of us,
people of all social classes while
they go about their ordinary,
daily work.
Grant us the strength
and courage, dear Jesus,
to be like St. Matthew
to immediately rise up and
follow you, to leave everything
behind especially sin and evil,
to be detached and to finally
stop activities that are not
compatible in following
you, Lord; like St. Matthew,
may we "write" your gospel
with our very lives of holiness,
making known to everyone
your Divine Mercy.
Dearest Jesus,
open our hearts to
intently listen to St. Matthew's
voice and message
so we may learn to
rise and stand
then follow you,
Lord,
with determination.
Amen.
St. Matthew,
pray for us!
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, 01 May 2023
Genesis 1:26-2:3 ><]]]]'> + <'[[[[>< Matthew 13:54-58
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2023.
Glory and praise to you,
God our loving Father
in giving us a share
in your work in making
this world a better place;
despite our sinfulness and
turning away from you
in the time of Adam and Eve,
you still call us to participate
in your work of holiness
by calling St. Joseph to
marry the Blessed Virgin
Mary, the Mother of your Son
and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Despite the difficult situation
and work ahead of him,
St. Joseph obeyed you,
working in silence,
doing your will,
taking care of Jesus and Mary
that in his work,
people recognized
Jesus!
Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue. They were astonished and said, “Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds? Is he not the carpenter’s son?”
Matthew 13:54-55
Like St. Joseph,
may we not find only
the labor and amount
of work to be done
in our tasks and jobs
but most of all,
that we may find
you in Jesus Christ,
the very meaning of
our life and work.
Amen.
Lawiswis Ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-01 ng Mayo 2023
Larawan kuha ng may-akda noong 2017, ang tinuturing “gawaan” ni San Jose sa Nazareth sa ilalim ng isang kapilya sa kanyang ngalan ngayon.
O San Jose na aming
patron ng mga manggagawa
bagama't marami ang hindi
nakaka-unawa sa iyong
mga ginawa
ng buong katahimikan
at katapatan
pangangalagaan
Panginoong Jesus
Manunubos natin
pati na Kanyang Ina,
ang Birheng Maria
upang matupad
banal na layon ng Diyos
kaligtasan ng sangkatauhan;
Bagama't walang sinsasaad
mga Banal na Kasulatan
sa iyong katauhan
maliban sa iyong pagiging
matuwid na mula sa lahi
ni Haring David,
sa iyo San Jose
mababanaagan ang
kabutihan at kadalisayan
ng kalooban nang si Jesus
ay kilalanin at ituring
"anak ng karpintero"
dahil marahil
kayo ay magkapareho
sa maraming aspekto.
Turuan kami
San Jose, aming pintakasi
higit sa mga gawain at
trabaho, aming hanapin
diwa at kahulugan ng buhay;
lahat ng pagpapagal
ay isang pag-aalay
sa bawat obra
si Kristo ang taglay
sa Kanya lahat nakasalalay
dahil Siya ang buhay
kaya kami ay tulungan
gumawa ng kabutihan
sa gitna ng katahimikan
ng aming paghahanap-buhay!
The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, 08 December 2021
Genesis 3:9-15, 20 ><}}}*> Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 ><}}}*> Luke 1:26-38
Photo by Rev. Fr. Gerry Pascual at Santuario di Greccio, Rieti, Italy in 2019.
Praise and glory to you,
O God our loving Father
in giving us a Mother in Mary
who gave birth to your Son Jesus
in order to save us from our sins!
Indeed, nothing is impossible
with you, dear God as you willed
Mary to be conceived immaculately
free from any sin to be pure and
clean to receive Jesus in her womb.
Because of that, she is rightly
called as our "advocate of grace"
and "model of holiness" for through
her, your life and blessings overflowed
upon us in Christ's coming.
And so, we pray to you, Father
in the name of Jesus our Lord
for all the people who have been
channels of your grace to us
like Mary: our beloved mothers and
fathers who brought us forth into this
world and nurtured us in your love,
still patiently bearing all of life's
beatings and sufferings for our own
good and comfort; we pray for our
siblings, especially our elder brothers
and sisters who have faithfully acted as
our parents too after they were gone
who ensured our safety and well-being,
our sources of joy when life is rough;
we pray for our friends who have remained
faithful by our side through thick and
thin, still believing in us despite our sins
and failures; we pray for our employers
and superiors and colleagues at work
who give us the chance to earn our
living with dignity and honor so we can
keep ourselves and loved ones warm and
secured specially in this time of the pandemic.
Most of all, we pray for your Holy Spirit,
dear Father, to always enlighten our
minds and our hearts so that like Mary
we may always be open to Christ's
coming not only to share him with
others but most of all like Mary his Mother,
we too may be conformed in him
our Savior as you have willed since
the beginning. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Breakfast Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in the Seventh Week of Easter, 17 May 2021
Acts 20:17-27 ><)))*> + ><)))*> + ><)))*> John 16:29-33
Smoky skies from the northern California wildfires turn the sky a glowing orange in San Francisco, California on 09 September 2020. Photo by Ray Chavez/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images
What a blessed Monday you have given us today, our loving Father, filling us with so many hopes for better days ahead of us. Yes, work has piled up for most of us with so many demands and targets to be met, so many obligations and responsibilities to fulfill this week, not to mention our many concerns in the family and with our very selves.
But, like the apostles in the gospel today, we are joyful even if we do not fully understand everything in life because you have assured us of your loving presence especially when troubles and problems arise.
"Behold, the hour is coming
and has arrived when each of you
will be scattered to his own home
and you will leave me alone.
But I am not alone,
because the Father is with me.
I have told you this so that
you might have peace in me.
In the world you will have trouble,
but take courage, I have conquered the world."
(John 16:32-33)
Truly, indeed, Lord, troubles have never stopped coming our way especially since the start of this pandemic.
We have so many worries and anxieties at the moment but we are thankful to your love and mercy. Your blessings and grace far outweigh all the troubles we have at the moment. Your kindness is more than enough as you give us everything we need.
Teach us to be content and grateful. Most of all, to remember and reach out to those with less in life, those who go through more troubles these days.
Like St. Paul who chose to travel “through the interior of the country down to Ephesus” instead of taking the usual and easier route to meet more people in need and rarely seen by almost everyone.
Give us the grace today to be one with those having many problems and troubles today. May our presence make them realize they are not alone, like you, dear Jesus who is always with the Father.
We pray most especially today for those going through many troubles whether by their own making or by others. Amen.
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