July 20, 2018

Gospel: Mt 12:1-8
It happened that, Jesus was walking through the wheat fields on a Sabbath. His disciples were hungry; and they began to pick some heads of wheat, to crush and to eat the grain. When the Pharisees noticed this, they said to Jesus, “Look at your disciples! They are doing what is prohibited on the Sabbath!” Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David did, when he and his men were hungry? He went into the House of God, and they ate the bread offered to God, though neither he nor his men had the right to eat it, but only the priests. And have you not read in the law, how, on the Sabbath, the priests in the temple desecrate the Sabbath, yet they are not guilty? I tell you, there is greater than the temple here. If you really knew the meaning of the words: It is mercy I want, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent. Besides, the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

Reflections
The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath After having created the world, the Lord rests. On the Sabbath, we rest to glorify the Lord for all he has created and provided us. However, when we are sick, we have difficulty praising God. Like creation that is still incomplete, we yearn for completion. Upon being restored, we praise and thank the Lord. In the Gospel, Jesus’ disciples were hungry. Despite the Sabbath Law, they picked, crushed and ate the grain. The hungry cannot rest; they are restless. To be hungry is to be incomplete. To be fed is to be fulfilled, like creation that is completed.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2018