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The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II First Friday in the Thirteenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 05 July 2024 Amos 8:4-6, 9-12 <*((((><< + >><))))*> Matthew 9:9-13
Help us, loving Father to be prophetic in our lives, to speak and live according to your words and precepts, witnessing your truth and justice, boldly speaking against the evil pervading among us. How easy, O God, for almost everybody today to speak strongly about truth without being prophetic at all like the Pharisees who saw Jesus dining with sinners and asked his disciples: "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" (Matthew 9:11); many of them are still among us these days who avail of every modern communication platform aided by the age-old tradition of corruption, championing the truth everywhere when in fact are subverting decency, honesty and sincerity because they are actually a manipulator or what a song labeled as "smooth operator" "whose eyes are like angels but his heart is cold."
Forgive us, Father, for the many times we have joined these smooth operators among us because we have benefitted from their excesses, trampling further the dignity of many especially the poor and voiceless; forgive us, Father, for those times we pretended to be prophetic, acting and speaking to be the virtuous ones as we project others as sinners especially those not on our side.
Teach us to be like Amos, Father, a prophet who spoke and lived out your words like Jesus who confronted the powerful and abusive among us, insisting that being prophetic is not what humans want but what God desires always which is mercy. Amen.
*Can't resist sharing Sade's 1984 hit "Smooth Operator" that inspired us too in our prayer-reflection today.
