January 15, 2018

Gospel: Mk 2:18-22
One day, when the Pharisees and the disciples of John the Baptist were fasting, some people asked Jesus, “Why is it, that both the Pharisees and the disciples of John fast, but yours do not?” Jesus answered, “How can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the day will come, when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast. “No one sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat, because the new patch will shrink and tear away from the old cloth, making a worse tear. And no one puts new wine into old wine skins, for the wine would burst the skins, and then both the wine and the skins would be lost. But new wine, new skins!”

Reflections
NEW WINE IN NEW WINE SKINS
These words of Jesus express the dynamism of his teachings. It is so much in contrast with the historical maldevelopment of our faith when what became important and normative was dogmatism and static teaching. But anything that is alive has to change, has to be renewed. Every age has its characteristics and
its challenges, its perspectives and its context. And if the Gospel is frozen to a specific age it will lose its vitality. I think that is why Pope Francis is showing us how we can live the Gospels in our times, answering the needs of the people today, healing their particular woundedness and inspiring us to face the challenges of our age. That is why many are coming back to the Church. Those who were disillusioned, those who felt they did not belong and those who felt condemned and excluded are finding hope that the Church is indeed their home and it is in her womb that they will grow and develop to their full humanity.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2018