The Catholic Calendar for Monday, January 15, 2001
The Second Week in Ordinary Time
Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
Hebrews 5:1-10
Psalm 110:1-4
Mark 2:18-22
Full text: http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/index.htm
A Reflection on Today's Scripture:
Sabbath was made for man. . .
There is one pointed, sharp, incredibly hard lesson Jesus has for us
in this passage. It's a message that goes against the grain and makes
everything seem much harder than it is in actuality.
Jesus tells us that the rules that God made, He made for human
beings. This rule of the Sabbath was one of the central tenets of the
Jewish faith. Jesus "violated" this rule by plucking grain. He
explains His actions by saying that the laws of God were established
for the good of humanity. When real human need (hunger, shelter,
water) reared its head, that need must be met. People are to be loved
at all costs.
What we hear is that the laws of God are not necessarily immutable.
They are meant to guide us and to help us on the way to sanctity.
Sometimes, we tend to cling to the rule as an end in itself. The rule
then becomes God. If the rule we are following does not guide us to
God, then it should be carefully examined--or more appropriately, our
attitude and the attitude we take in carrying it out should be
carefully examined. Rules are to help, not to hurt.
Sometimes it would be easier if we could just perform rote actions
out of some book and thus please God. But God's pleasure comes from
our alignment of our wills with His Will, not from following the
letter of the law without participation in the spirit.
- JuandelaCruz, TOC
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