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Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Monday, Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, 09 November 2026 Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12 ><}}}}*> 1 Corinthians 3:9-16-17 ><}}}}*> John 2:13-22
Let your zeal for your house consume me, Lord Jesus!
On this feast of the dedication of the St. John Lateran Basilica which is the "mother and head of all churches of Rome and the world", I pray for a thorough cleansing of ourselves and of the Church from the inside; as I pray on that scene when you "made a whip out of cords and drove out all the money changers with their tables" along with the animals and doves being sold there, I see the present situation of your Church, Jesus; yes, we have made the Father's house a marketplace - everything has become a business because we are so afraid of having less, of being poor, of going hungry and thirsty that is why we have gravitated towards the rich and powerful, including corrupt politicians we love rubbing elbows with totally forgetting the poor and the hungry, the very people themselves we are meant to serve we have actually detached from.
Cleanse our very hearts, Jesus, for we your clergy are your vessels and instruments to make known your gospel but sadly we have become so busy with so many other works we have justified, leaving us without time with you in personal, daily prayers that have made our celebrations of the Mass empty, becoming selective in dispensing the sacraments especially Confession and Anointing while our lives drift apart from your ways, we becoming the influencer, the star.
Reignite our zeal for your Church, Jesus that we finally make a firm stand against sin and evils perpetrated by brothers hiding in cassocks and vestments; we pray for every bishop not to dilly dally in their being teachers of faith that they may defend always the teachings of the Church instead of being accommodating with the ways of the world; we pray for every bishop to use their staff in disciplining wayward priests while being fair and just with all their priests.
Let us overturn, Jesus, the systemic culture of silence among us your priests so that we may walk our talks, do away with clericalism and petty turf wars that bloated our ego to forget our calling to bring life and joy to those suffering and in pain especially those at the margins. Amen.
