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The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Wednesday in the Second Week of Ordinary Time, Year I, 18 January 2023 Hebrews 7:1-3, 15-17 ><)))*> + <*(((>< - ><)))*> + <*(((>< Mark 3:1-6
Beginning today until next Wednesday, Mother Church invites us to observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity especially for the evangelization of peoples and for the persecuted Christians around the world; may our prayers lead us to work for peace most especially in our home, in our parish and community, and in our country.
May we stop and put an end to those cliches of wishing for peace like in most beauty contests that make a mockery of peace; may we realize that peace is God's greatest gift to us which we have often taken for granted, something God freely gives if we are willing to give up and sacrifice our very selves for the sake of peace like Abraham in the Old Testament.
Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of God Most High, met Abraham as he returned from his defeat of the kings and blessed him. And Abraham apportioned to him a tenth of everything. His name means righteous king, and he was also “king of Salem,” that is, king of peace.
Hebrews 7:1-2
Peace finally came to us in Christ Jesus who is likened to Melchizedek, God's high priest in the Old Testament; like Melchizedek, Jesus is our High Priest for he is "without father, mother, or ancestry, without beginning of days or end of life" (Heb.7:3); but, unlike Melchizedek, Jesus is our High Priest because he is the Son of God who offered himself for us as a sacrifice, dying on the Cross but rose to life on the third day! On the evening of that Easter, Jesus appeared to his disciples, greeting them with "peace" as his precious gift of his resurrection.
Loving Father, give us the grace to value this immense gift of peace by Jesus Christ won through his Cross; like Jesus, may we choose the path of peace by doing what is good not evil; of choosing persons not things and rituals and laws; of choosing God above all than selfish interests.
As we close our hands to pray for peace and unity, may we learn to let go of whatever we are holding, of being empty handed like Jesus; like that man with withered hand Jesus healed in the temple on a sabbath, may we stretch out our hands to reach out to those in need, to those persecuted, to those sick and dying, to those forgotten. Let your peace, O God, begin within me, right in my heart empty of pride, filled with the humility, justice, and love of Jesus. Amen.
