The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday, Feast of Sts. Philip & James, Apostles, 03 May 2024
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 ><}}}}*> Psalms 19:2-3, 4-5 ><}}}}*> John 14:6-14
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2024.
Thank You, dear Jesus
in coming to us,
most especially calling us
to know You
and be close with You
like Your Apostles
Philip and James the Less
whose feast we celebrate
today.
that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. After that he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. After that he appeared to James, then to all the Apostles. Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me.
1 Corinthians 15: 5-8
Like Philip and James the Less,
we are Your apostles too:
we may not have met You
personally in that particular time,
but we have seen You so many times
when You appeared to us on many
occasions in our lives;
You appeared as people we love,
as people who love us,
as strangers with good hearts
who live in You
and Your words;
You appeared to us
in many circumstances
both good and bad,
most especially in dismal ones;
You appear to us always when
we are near You in prayers,
in good works,
in state of grace;
You appear to us
when we are not distant from You
due to sins.
Like Philip and James the Less,
let us grow in intimacy with You,
dear Jesus in prayers
and good works;
like Philip,
let us keep on asking You
questions, let us keep on
searching for You and the Father;
like James,
let us be silent
to listen to other voices
to hear You speaking
to us always
like in the Council of Jerusalem;
let us be like James Your cousin
as reconcilers of people
in You,
not dividers
for it is when we are
in communion,
when we are one as
disciples when You truly
appear to us.
Amen.
Jesus teaching his Twelve Apostles painting by Frenchman James Tissot (1836-1902), from GettyImages.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday, Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop & Doctor of the Church, 02 May 2024
Acts 15:7-21 ><}}}}*> Psalm 96:1-2, 2-3, 10 ><}}}}*> John 15:9-11
Your words today, Lord Jesus,
are so dramatic like in the movies
when Your disciples twice went silent:
"The whole assembly fell silent,
and they listened while Paul and Barnabas
described the signs and wonders
God worked among the gentiles
through them.
After they had fallen silent,
James responded,
'My brothers, listen to me...'"
(Acts 15:12-13).
Teach me to be silent, Lord,
so that I may listen and hear
what others are saying,
what You are telling me
through others;
let me be silent, Jesus,
to listen more to You,
to experience Your presence,
Your love and care,
Your mercy and forgiveness,
and Your wisdom and direction
I must take in this life harassed
by so many noises and competing
voices to follow.
How interesting that Your
great servant and theologian
St. Athanasius whose Memorial
we celebrate today, the first of the
Doctors of the Church who fought
the heretics to insist on Your being
true God and true man
was forced into exile so many times
defending You and Your truth as the Christ;
how lovely to reflect in those repeated
exiles of St. Athanasius he fell silent
not because of fear but because of courage
by continuing to pray and reflect
on Your Person as the Son of God.
Lord Jesus Christ,
silence is the domain of trust;
hence, teach me most especially
to be silent like the saints
in order to trust You more
so that I can love more
like You by remaining close
with You, in You always
(John 15:9).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.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday in the Fifth Week of Easter, 30 April 2024
Acts 14:19-28 <*((((>< + ><))))*> John 14:27-31
Photo by Fr. Pop Dela Cruz, Binuangan Island, Obanda, Bulacan, 2021.
Your words today,
O Lord Jesus,
are very comforting
and soothing on these
extremely hot days of summer;
and how amazing your words
were set in the most distressing
situations:
in the first reading, Paul was stoned
and dragged out of Lystra,
"supposing he was dead"
(Acts 14:19);
in the gospel, as You spoke
of Your impending betrayal
and arrest leading to Your
Passion and Death, You spoke
about peace, telling Your disciples
"Do not let your hearts be troubled
or afraid" (Jn.14:27).
How amazing, dear Jesus,
are Your strength and courage
to assure others even in the midst
of great turmoil Yourself;
where did Paul get those
grace and power to strengthen
the spirits of others, exhorting them
to persevere in faith (Acts 14:22)
after he almost got killed?
Photo by Fr. Pop Dela Cruz, Binuangan Island, Obanda, Bulacan, 2021.
Many times, my Lord,
I cave into myself,
worst, sulk in isolation
from the rest when disappointed
and hurt;
keep me strong, dear Jesus,
let me persevere in face of trials
and difficulties like Paul,
keeping in mind that difficulties
are temporary,
are meant to purify
and strengthen me
because the enemy has no power
over me for You have already
conquered the world in love;
let me rejoice in the face of
my adversaries so that the world
may know and experience Your great
love poured upon me in Your
passion and death.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in the Fifth Week of Easter, 29 April 2024
Acts 14:5-18 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> John 14:21-26
Photo by author, San Juan, La Union, July 2023.
Like the Apostle Jude,
I have always wanted to ask You
dear Jesus, "Master, then what
happened that you will reveal yourself to us
and not to the world?" (John 14:22);
why, O Lord, You not simply appear
to everyone so that people will
not have to create other gods
like the people at Lystra who mistook
Paul and Barnabas as Hermes and Zeus?
Jesus answered and said to him, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.”
John 14:23
It is a very timely question
many of us are still asking
and Your answer, O Lord,
was mysterious and so profound;
but, thank You, dear Jesus,
for being so near with us,
for being with us always
to enable us to slowly grasp
and understand Your words:
forgive us, Lord, when we take
You as a thing, as an object
to be possessed and held
like those idols and gods
not only of the Greeks and Romans
of old but by many of us today
in various forms and ways;
You, O Jesus, are a Person,
Someone who must be seen
and perceived by our hearts
so that You may take Your dwelling
within us; how lovely that despite
our sins and weaknesses,
You desire to enter our lives;
grant us, therefore, Lord,
an open heart willing to welcome You
inside, to dwell in our hearts
so that we may manifest You to others
in our life of witnessing You peace
and joy, mercy and love, kindness
and reconciliation so that like the
psalmist, we may always sing,
"Not to us, O Lord, not to us
but to your name give glory
because of your mercy,
because of your truth"
(Psalm 115:1).
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Fifth Sunday in the Easter Season, Cycle B, 28 April 2024
Acts 9:26-31 ><}}}}*> 1 John 3:18-24 ><}}}}*> John 15:1-8
From the Good Shepherd last Sunday, Jesus today declares himself as the “true vine”. Notice that qualifier true vine similar with last Sunday’s good shepherd because Jesus “lays down his life for the sheep” (Jn. 10:11, 17, 18); so we ask, was there an untrue vine?
Yes. Jesus was referring to Israel, God’s vineyard lavished with all his care but produced wild grapes as portrayed in Isaiah’s “Vineyard Song” that he vowed to take it away and plant a new vine fulfilled in Christ (Is. 5:1-7). Jesus as the true vine is an expression of his Incarnation, of how God in Jesus Christ became human like us in everything except sin so that we in turn would become like him, holy and divine. This can only be when keep that union intact by remaining in Christ.
Jesus said to his disciples: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.
Our scene is now at the Last Supper, after the washing of the feet of the disciples. Judas had already left and Jesus began his series of discourses capped with his high priestly prayer after which they proceeded to Gethsemane for his betrayal and arrest.
Imagine the solemnity of the scene, of how Jesus had shown the Twelve the meaning of his being the good shepherd laying down his life by taking the bread and wine as his Body and Blood given to everyone. All these will have its fullness on Good Friday at the Cross while it would take some time after Easter and Pentecost when the disciples will finally grasp and understand its meanings.
We are not just going back to a past event, to what Jesus had done. In declaring himself as the true vine, Jesus reveals to us himself truly God and Risen from the dead, telling us how we can share in the joy and mystery of his Resurrection. And that is by remaining in Jesus first above all, “Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.”
Photo by Dra. Carol Reyes-Santos, MD at Napa Valley, California, 2023.
See how in eight verses, Jesus used the word “remain” eight times because it is not enough Jesus is the true vine in whom we are blessed and become fruitful; we must remain in him too.
There is no doubt of Jesus remaining in us which is what his being a true vine is all about; unlike Israel in the Old Testament that produced wild grapes, Jesus can no longer be uprooted because he is God himself who had become one in us. But, are we one in him and with him?
To remain is more than physical like to stay. A branch remaining, staying intact with the vine but had turned yellow and dried up is clearly not one with the vine. We can be inside the church but be detached with everyone and the celebration. We may be staying or residing in the same address and home but our heart and very self may be so far away from our siblings or parents, or from your wife or husband.
Remaining implies something more than physical presence. To remain is to have a relationship, a bonding that is deep and intimate. To remain is to be of one heart as GMA7 claims to be a kapuso which is more important than being a kapamilya or a kapatid. There is no sense of being a family (kapamilya) when there is no love in the family or at the other hand, a sibling (kapatid) is nothing if the brother or sister is your enemy. We remain with God and everyone when our hearts are attuned or inclined to God and with others in love which is the fruit of the vine, Jesus Christ.
We can only bear much fruit, be more loving, if we remain in Jesus Christ. It is an imperative, therefore in this life that we remain in Christ for without him, separated him, we can do nothing. Fruit and love are always together as shown in the institution narrative and on Good Friday.
Being fruitful is more than being successful that is often seen and measured in material things. Being fruitful, being more loving is spiritual in nature, can never be measured with what we have but what have we given. Most of all, being fruitful is depending, relying more in Jesus Christ than in one’s self. That is why remaining in Christ is a prerequisite to be fruitful.
We remain in Jesus in prayer when he said, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you” (Jn. 15:7). But, prayer here as in most parts of the gospel does not mean asking God for anything; to remain in Jesus in prayer is to ask for God himself. It is only in having God we can truly love and experience joy and peace within despite the many trials and pains we go through in life.
In the first reading we have heard how Paul, still known as Saul arrived in Jerusalem and “tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple” (Acts 9:26). It must have been so difficult for Saul as well as for the early Christians too to welcome him! Saul must have a hard time convincing them he had really changed, that he had been converted in Christ while he must also understand the feelings of the Christians whom he persecuted before.
Photo by Dra. Carol Reyes-Santos,MD, at Napa Valley, California, 2023.
Let us keep in mind too that Saul’s conversion did not necessarily mean an end of their persecution; in fact, persecutions would turn more fierce later but it was during that time when the church grew so fast and wide too! That was because they remained in Christ who caused their efforts to bear much fruits no one expected.
Look back into our lives and see how when we remained in Christ and problems never stopped but that is when we are more fruitful, more fulfilled in life. Like our responsorial psalm this Sunday, “we praise the Lord in the midst of the assembly” to thank God from our hearts for all the blessings he bestows us like inner growth and maturity, feeling fruitful not just successful. Indeed, as the beloved disciple rightly noted in our second reading today, “God is greater than our hearts and knows everything” (1 Jn. 3:20).
This Sunday, Jesus is telling us “I am the true vine” to show us how God’s life is now in us through Christ and how our life is in God still through Christ. Let us remain in Jesus as he continues to reveal to us who he really is, our Lord and God, so we can share in the many joys and mysteries of his Resurrection. Let us pray:
Lord Jesus Christ,
let me remain in You;
let me stay in You
when things are so difficult
and let me still remain in You
when life is so beautiful;
let me be near and close
to You as You are in me,
speaking Your words,
doing Your will;
in my remaining in You,
may I be fruitful by bringing
others closer to You so that
in the end, we all remain
one in You.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Fourth Week of Easter, 26 April 2024
Acts 13:26-33 ><]]]]’> + ><]]]]]’> + ><]]]]’> John 14:1-6
Photo by author, Anvaya Cove, 15 April 2024.
When Paul came to Antioch in Pisidia, he said in the synagogue: “My brothers… The inhabitants of Jerusalem and their leaders failed to recognize him, and by condemning him they fulfilled the oracles of the prophets that are read sabbath after sabbath.
Acts 13:26, 27
Failure.
One of life's many mysteries,
next to pain and suffering
that has baffled us ever since.
Sometimes avoidable,
sometimes inevitable
but surely happens
most of the time.
Like the Apostles
at the Last Supper,
I fear failures, Lord Jesus;
as much as possible,
I avoid or at least
minimize failures
to maximize success
and victories.
But, dear Jesus,
it is not enough to avoid
and minimize failures;
You have taught me so many times
that like You, I have to embrace
even befriend failure
which is part of our lives.
That is why You gifted us
with faith:
Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places… I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
John 14:1-2, 6
More than a virtue
and a gift from Above,
faith is a relationship
with You
and in You,
dear Jesus;
it is in entering
into a personal
relationship with You
in faith,
through faith
that I can embrace
and befriend failure
so that it does not matter
anymore how I got lost
but how I have
remained in You my Way,
a Person and a revelation
of the Father's love,
not just a concept
in philosophy or technology
like the AI pretending
to lead me;
deepen my faith in You,
Jesus so that every communication
in You is true because it is a giving
of my self in love
like You at the Cross;
lastly,
let me grow in faith in You,
dearest Jesus so that
despite the many failures
that may come to me,
everything leads to eternity
because You alone is
life.
Amen.
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, an orange-bellied flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma) somewhere in the Visayas, December 2023.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Feast of St. Mark, Evangelist, 25 April 2024
1 Peter 5:5-14 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> Mark 16:15-20
“Judas Betrays Jesus With A Kiss”, painting by Russian Pavel Popov from arthive.com; notice young man fleeing from the scene naked believed to be St. Mark.
"Beloved:
Clothe yourselves with humility
in your dealings with one
another, for: God opposes
the proud but bestows favor
on the humble"
(1 Peter 5:5).
Your words,
O Lord Jesus
from St. Peter's first letter
are amazing, a most beautiful
juxtaposition of being
"clothed with humility"
on this feast of St. Mark
who is believed
to have been that naked man
fleeing from the scene
of Your arrest at Gethsemane:
"Now a young man followed him
wearing nothing but a linen cloth
about his body.
They seized him,
but he left the cloth behind
and ran off naked"
(Mark 14:51-52).
A painting of St. Mark the Evangelist by French artist Valentin de Boulogne done in 1624-1625 from en.wikipedia.org.
Only St. Mark
has this detail on that scene
because only him could have known
that embarrassing moment
but have boldly kept it because,
before we can ever be
"clothed with humility"
and any other virtue,
we must first be naked
like him,
laying bare not only our body
but most of all,
our heart and soul
with its kind of
superficial discipleship;
very notable too how
St. Mark later ran away too
from Paul and Barnabas
at Perga (Acts 13:13)
for reasons unknown
except his being so young
and immature.
But everything changed,
during the Roman persecution
when St. Mark remained to work
with St. Peter and St. Paul,
and after their martyrdom,
that was when he ventured into
writing the first gospel account
that inspired the early Christians
to remain faithful in You, Jesus,
amid the persecutions.
Clothe us in humility, O Lord,
like St. Mark by having
the courage to admit
our nakedness,
to remember and learn
from our shameful
humiliations in the past
because more important
than these are Your love
and mercy dear Jesus
to start anew in You after
every failure and sin;
most of all,
fill us Jesus Christ
with Your strength and
courage to be Your witnesses
proclaiming the Gospel
to every creature
because in every disciple,
what really matters most
is being present with You, Lord,
and not our absences
nor lapses in the past.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday in the Fourth Week of Easter, 24 April 2024
Acts 12:24-13:5 <*((((>< + ><))))*> John 12:44-50
Photo by author, Anvaya Cove, 15 April 2024.
It was You, dear God,
who started that beautiful
process of "setting apart"
day from night,
darkness from light,
land from water;
and now, You tell us
in Your words how You
set apart some people
for special mission for You.
While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, completing their fasting and prayer, they laid hands on them and sent them off. So they, sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. When they arrived in Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues (Acts 13:2-5).
In our Baptism and Confirmation,
most especially in the Holy Eucharist,
You set us apart, O Lord,
to special mission too
to proclaim Your word,
to make You present
in this world.
Help us imitate the early Church
of always praying and fasting
to be filled with Your Word
Jesus Christ who became flesh
and dwelled among us;
enable us to set apart
our own biases and differences
for Your mission;
let us set apart our own words
from Your divine word
to only speak of You
and never about us;
most of all,
let us set apart
our own glory and interests
so that like Jesus,
we may only "say
as the Father told me"
(Jn. 12:50).
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday in the Fourth Week of Easter, 23 April 2024
Acts 11:19-26 ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> + ><}}}}*> John 10:22-30
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, July 2020 in Katmon Nature Sanctuary & Beach Resort, Infanta, Quezon.
What a lovely story today,
Lord Jesus of Barnabas
who was sent by the Apostles
from Jerusalem to Antioch
to check on the growing number
of Your followers who were
called for the first time as "Christians";
what is most touching in this story,
dear Jesus is when Barnabas
went to Tarsus to look for Saul,
Your former persecutor,
their former enemy:
And when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the Church and taught a large number of people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:26).
Surely it was not simply because
they believed in You, O Jesus,
that they were called Christians;
most likely because they have lived
truly like You, Lord,
imitators of the Christ who
truly cared for one another
by forgiving those who have sinned,
and most likely too,
truly loving their enemies
like Saul;
I pray, dear Lord, for those
who truly love and care for me,
for those who look for me,
for those who check on me
how life has been going on,
for those who stay with me
to guide me back to You, Jesus.
Grant me the grace, Lord Jesus,
like Barnabas to look for those
we have forgotten,
those we take for granted,
those who annoy us,
those we can easily dismiss
as nonsense and ordinary,
those who have hurt us,
those we hate;
grant us the courage to let
Your voice lead us Lord Jesus
to other Sauls of this world
so we may lead them to You
to find life in You.
Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in the Fourth Week of Easter, 22 April 2024
Acts 11:1-18 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> John 10:1-10
Photo by author in Silang, Cavite, September 2020.
Lord Jesus Christ,
as we go back to school and to work
this Monday, I pray
that we "object" less
to one another,
that we hold our "objections"
to ourselves first until
we have found the merits
of an endeavor or proposal
and most especially,
until we have found Your Holy Will.
The Apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem the circumcised believers confronted him, saying, “You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them.” Peter began and explained it to them step by step… When they heard this, they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying, “God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.” (Acts 11:1-4, 18)
Teach us, dear Jesus,
to widen our perspectives
and to always be alert for
the movements of the Holy Spirit
so that we do not waste
time and energies with our
endless "objections"
that often paralyze
missions and operations
and worst of all, destroy
people.
How lovely is Your claim,
"I am the gate for the sheep"
(John 10:7) for we all belong
to You alone; when we object
a lot, we close the gate,
we hinder the flow of people
to the gate, and most of all,
we steal Your sheep!
Do not let our many and endless
objections claimed as for the
greater good but totally empty of You
hinder our flock in finding You
"so that they might have life
and have it more abundantly"
(John 10:10).
Amen.
Photo by author in Silang, Cavite, September 2020.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Fourth Sunday in the Easter Season, Cycle B, 21 April 2024
Acts 4:8-12 ><}}}}*> 1 John 3:1-2 ><}}}}*> John 10:1-10
Photo by author, dusk at Anvaya Cove in Bataan, 15 April 2024.
My kinakapatid is turning 60 this week with a dinner to be prepared by an Italian chef. His sister texted me for my main course and I chose lamb chops. And immediately she replied, “Pareho tayo. Mary’s little pet… the one who takes away the sins of the world.” Her wit floored me that I had to agree with a text, “Right. The most biblical and holiest food.”
Sorry for some little bragging as we celebrate this fourth Sunday in Easter as “Good Shepherd Sunday”…
We Filipinos have a hard time getting the “feel” of the shepherd because we have never had that image in our culture. Hence, it is a most welcomed development that there is now a growing popularity in tending sheep in the country while the Filipino palate had finally discovered a taste for lamb.
Come to think of this: the sheep exists only for two reasons, for food and clothing. They are meant to be slaughtered unlike dogs or cats or birds kept as pets. Another notable thing with sheep is the fact it is the only land animal that go against the flow when crossing a river like the salmon!
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD, at Katmon Nature Sanctuary & Beach Resort in Infanta, Quezon, 03 April 2024.
Ilove those characteristics of the sheep, for slaughtering which is almost like offering and always going against the tide. Exactly just like our Lord Jesus Christ who identified Himself as the good shepherd.
Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep… This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to raise it up again. This command I have received from my Father (John 10:11, 17-18).
First we notice here His use of the “I AM” which for the Jews refers to God when He told Moses “I AM WHO AM.” Clearly, Jesus was declaring to the people at that time that He is the Son of God, the awaited Messiah or Christ.
This scene was shortly before the feast of the dedication of the Jews after Jesus had healed a man born blind, a miracle never heard of at that time. It was a big issue then as authorities refused to accept that Jesus did indeed healed the man born blind.
Secondly, Jesus mentioned four times in just three verses the act of “laying down his life for the sheep” (vv. 11, 17, and 18). It sounded so good to hear how Jesus loves us so much that He would lay down His life for us his sheep; but, those were not just mere words Jesus expressed but a reality that happened at the Cross on Good Friday that He actually explained after this discourse at their Last Supper!
Keep in mind that we are now going back to the earlier discourses and teachings of Jesus that only became clear to the disciples including us today after Easter. We shall be having a lot of these “flashbacks” to understand and love Jesus more and His teachings.
According to Pope Benedict XVI in his first book of the Jesus of Nazareth series, “The Cross is at the center of the shepherd discourse” (page 280). When Jesus said “This is my Body… This is my Blood”, He meant really Himself being given for us; Jesus did not merely give something for us but His very self as seen on the Cross on Good Friday.
That is how Jesus gives life – by giving up His life for us so that when He arose, we then share in His being a good shepherd through our little dying to ourselves because of love, giving life to those around us.
As the good shepherd, Jesus was the first to enter death, to be slaughtered but this time minus the violence and gore of the Cross that was the worst punishment of all time when He said “I lay down my life in order to take it up again”. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.”
Yes, there was victimhood but more than that was His being an offering never forced nor imposed by anyone or by circumstances. Jesus did it all for love!
Though He was handed over (paradidomi) and betrayed by Judas, Jesus was totally free, actively passive went to his Passion and Death because He was very certain of His Resurrection.
We experience the same thing many times in life when we have to make great sacrifices like when we have to allow a loved one to die after a long illness. Death is a grace and a blessing when freely given too by those around the dying, freeing the dying person of any guilt when he/she finally goes.
The same thing is true when friends and lovers separate either because they have found other loves to pursue or worst, have fallen out of love with us despite all our love for them. It is the most unkindest cut of all breakups and separations, excruciatingly painful as we blindly give up our relationships ironically for love. More than the persons and circumstances involved, we freely choose to let go – magparaya in Filipino – because deep in our wounded and hollowed heart is the hope they may grow in their new love.
Here we are like Jesus the Good Shepherd because even in the death of our relationships is still found our love. Like Jesus Christ, we do not simply give something but our very selves. The Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner beautifully expressed this when he described Jesus is both “the Gift and the Giver.”
Photo by Dra. Mylene A. Santos, MD of the sheep’s wool, 03 April 2024.
Love is better shown than said. Love cannot be defined but only be described for it is so wide and vast in its nature and scope. Love simply shows itself. That is why when we speak of love, we use comparisons and analogies and yet, they are not enough. How much more when we speak of the love of God?!
This Sunday, Jesus spoke of His love like every human being using the language of parable and allegories. But truly Divine, we find so much more when He claimed “I AM the good shepherd.” It is His total person and self, His being both the Gift and the Giver.
The good news is, because of His giving of self, we too have become like Him able to give ourselves wholly in love. Like Peter in the first reading, we experienced great powers within us not innately ours but God working in us, enabling us to empower others by healing them not literally but figuratively speaking.
When Jesus declared “I AM the good shepherd”, He reminds us of being the children of God, His indwelling, our being an “I AM” of God Himself. Like Him, we are good shepherds able to love in Christ to the point of being foolish as St. Paul experienced.
Like the sheep, let us continue to forge on with life’s many difficulties, even if many times we have to go against the flow of the world that is always selfish and misleading. Let us pray:
Dearest Jesus,
help me to give more of myself
not just of something from me;
help me to lay down my life
for my friends even if it means
not just losing myself but
losing them in order to gain You;
help me to remain in You,
my Good Shepherd,
to never go astray
because life and love
are found only in You,
the Gift and Giver.
Amen.
Have a blessed week ahead!
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Third Week of Easter, 19 April 2024
Acts 9:1-20 ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> + ><]]]]'> John 6:52-59
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
Lord Jesus,
today You tell us
how often You write
in straight crooked ways
that always bring us
to the right path in life.
Saul, stil breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that, if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains. On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him (Acts 9:1-4).
Of course,
we know by heart this story
of Saul's conversion
who became known as Paul;
but, what is so lovely in his story
is how he persecuted the early Christians
then known as followers of the "Way"
when on his way near Damascus,
You appeared to him, O Lord;
Paul eventually reached Damascus
not to arrest the followers of the Way
but found himself following You, Jesus
the only Way in this life!
Many times, Jesus,
we are blinded like Paul,
going on our own journey
and paths in life;
like the Jews in Capernaum
who were so blinded too
that they quarreled
among themselves
in their inability to grasp
what You meant by
eating Your flesh.
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
Dearest Jesus,
take away our blindness,
send us our own Ananias
who would guide us to You
like Paul;
thank You, Jesus,
in allowing us to follow
our own path even if it is
the wrong way only to let us
see eventually how blinded
we have been
as You slowly lead us back
to Your path
of faith in You
to enable us to hope
in You until eventually,
we end up serving You lovingly
in others whom we have crossed
path with as You wondrously
write straight our crooked ways
to meet You
in each other.
Amen.
Photo by Mr. Vigie Ongleo, Sagada, Mt. Province, 2014.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Thursday in the Third Week of Easter, 18 April 2024
Acts 8:26-40 <*{{{{>< + <*{{{>< + ><}}}*> + ><}}}}*> John 6:35-40
Praise and thanksgiving
to You, God our most loving Father
in Jesus Christ our Lord,
our Eternal Priest
for Your gift of being a priest
this past 26 years!
It is pure mercy and love
from You, dear God
that we were called to serve
Your people,
to be Your presence
despite our sinfulness
and so many flaws and
weaknesses.
As we celebrate today
our 26th ordination to the priesthood,
one thing I ask of You
in Jesus:
like the Apostle Philip,
let me "get up" always to
follow You wherever You send me.
The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, “Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.” (Acts 8:26)
There were so many times
I have fallen due to sins,
disappointments and disillusions,
sickness and exhaustion,
sadness and loneliness,
griefs and hurts,
shame and embarrassments,
humiliations and failures,
betrayals and infidelities;
many times You knew it,
O Lord,
how I felt better laying face down
on earth and dirt,
about to give up
when You would go down too
just to tell me to "get up",
"raising" me up to
keep on following You
even at the desert route
that was so difficult.
Thank You for always believing
in me, Jesus,
for always being patient with me,
for always trusting me;
O dearest Jesus,
You have given me with so much
and I have given You so little;
let me give more of myself,
most of all,
more of Your love
and mercy and kindness
to those around me.
Amen.
From left, Fr. Romi, Fr. Arnel, Fr. Len, Bp. Dennis, Fr. Ed, and me after our Mass on the occasion of our silver anniversary last year. Not in photo was Fr. Joshua who was sick at that time.
The Lord Is My Chef Easter Recipe by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Tuesday in the Third Week of Easter, 16 April 2024
Acts 7:51-8:1 <*((((>< + <*(((>< + ><)))*> + ><))))*> John 6:22-29
Photo by Ms. Ria De Vera, November 2020.
Lord Jesus,
teach me to bend my knees
before You starting today;
let me bring back those
vanishing gestures of
kneeling and genuflection
almost unknown these days
among the people;
we live in a clapping culture
where we give so much
emphasis on what our hands
can do that only end up
in manipulating everything
and everyone,
especially when we clap
senselessly or ridiculously
so often
especially in our
liturgical celebrations.
My dearest Jesus,
teach me to exercise my
powerful muscles
of the legs and knees,
to bend and kneel more often,
to get low to the ground
to remember my origins,
to be humble before You,
my Lord and my God.
As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them”; and when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Acts 7:59-60
Photo by Mr. Red Santiago, January 2020.
Help me realize,
dear Jesus,
that it is in being humble
before you like a child,
kneeling before You
when we truly find You,
when You truly answer
our prayers;
very often,
we come to You
without looking at You,
seeing only what You can give
like those in the crowd
who asked You to give them
bread from heaven
without realizing
You are the bread Yourself
whom we must receive.
Because they have forgotten
to kneel and bow low before
in order to find You.
Amen.
