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The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Thursday, Solemnity of Sts. Peter & Paul, Apostles, 29 June 2023 Acts 12:1-11 ><}}}}*> 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18 ><}}}}*> Matthew 16:13-19
Praise and glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ for this Solemnity of your two great Apostles, Sts. Peter and Paul whom you have both chosen to be the solid rock on which your Church is built, remaining forever her protectors and guides; to them Rome owes her greatness when you, O Lord, led them to sanctify that capital of the ancient Empire with their martyrdom to become the center of the Christian world until now.
In their great efforts of fulfilling your mission, there emerged a most unique even unlikely partnership in making you known, O Lord, teaching us that important lesson that discipleship is always being together with others being sent on a mission, never alone nor simply a case of "me and Jesus" as we would always insist. Teach us, dear Jesus, to be like Sts. Peter and Paul focused only in you to overcome our many differences in the Church; help us to set aside our biases and prejudices to always find you as the very essence of our discipleship; may we learn to respect each other by finding you in each co-worker and with everyone we serve and meet. May our lives mirror your true person, Lord Jesus, so that people are not misled to who you really are.
How inspiring that both Sts. Peter and Paul were imprisoned for preaching your name and yet, no bars nor chains not even death held them captives in spreading your good news; in fact, some of the finest parts of the New Testament were composed when both Apostles were in prison; what a grace for us today their many letters still sound so true and relevant, providing us compass in charting our ways in a world so divided and so sick with individualism, relativism, and materialism. Help us, dear Jesus, to break free from the many prisons that hold us from freely witnessing your loving service for others like Sts. Peter and Paul; set us free, Lord, from the chains that hold us and make us fearful of standing by our faith and of your teachings in this time of total disrespect for life; most of all, free us, O Lord, like St. Peter from our prison cells of indifference in the face of continued erosion of marriage and family as envisioned by God since creation.
Dear Jesus, make us realize that every present moment is the time of our departure; may we live fully at your service by keeping the faith in you like Sts. Peter and Paul. Amen.
