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The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Friday in the Sixth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I, 17 February 2023 Genesis 11:1-9 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> Mark 8:34-9:1
Thank you, O God our loving Father for this wonderful Friday; after a week of stories of our Creation and Fall, your words today invite us anew to look deeper into our hearts to find you and see your plans for us.
The story of the tower of Babel reveals many things about our hearts, of how we would always start seeming to be good, like being one and united as a people which you have always desired; but, like the people at that time, our seemingly good and innocent plans reveal sinister evil within our hearts: "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth" (Genesis 11:4).
Forgive us, O God, the many times we have tried manipulating you, fooling our selves with our supposed to be good intentions when in fact full of evil and selfish motives; how funny we have never learned that in our efforts to preserve ourselves through our many selfish schemes, the more we fall, the more we ended up divided like at Babel.
The Lord brings to nought the plans of nations; he foils the designs of peoples. But the plan of the Lord stands forever, the design of his heart through all generations.
Psalm 33:10-11
Let us not confuse unity with oneness right away; yes we have to be one in you through others, but never one in ourselves or with others for a vested interest for it shall surely collapse and crash like Babel; take away our arrogance that pretend to be sincere and true in always having the best intentions, the most beautiful plans when in fact are all self-serving, trying to impose our very selves on others; make us realize that life is fragile, that anything can always happen with us and with our plans, that we have no total control of everything and hence, simply be open to your new directions and instructions. Help us forget our selves, to take up our cross and follow your Son Jesus Christ in humility and simplicity, in hiddenness and silence, in kindness and love for others which is your original plan for us as a people. Make us one in you, dear Father, regardless of our language and color, or any other differences like at Pentecost. Amen.
