Saturday,
September 05, 2015
22nd Week in
Ordinary Time
1st Reading: Col 1: 21-23
Gospel: Lk 6:1-5
One Sabbath Jesus was going through the corn fields and his disciples began to pick heads of grain crushing them in their hands for food. Some of the Pharisees asked them, “Why do you do what is forbidden on the Sabbath?” Then Jesus spoke, “Have you never read what David did when he and his men were hungry?” He entered the house of God, took and ate the bread of the offering and even gave some to his men, though only priests are allowed to eat that bread.” And Jesus added, “The Son of Man is Lord and rules over the Sabbath.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
Jesus found the laws oppressive of his own people. These, in fact, did not spare his disciples. They were picking heads of grains one day as they were walking though the cornfields when the Pharisees accused them of violating the Sabbath law. To the distorted judgment of the Pharisees, the disciples were already harvesting and so violated the Sabbath prohibition against work. The exaggeration is obvious.
They were making a mountain out of a molehill.
How did the Law of Moses become oppressive to the people in due time? Blame it on their religious leaders who crafted a lot of enabling laws to implement God’s commandments. These turned out to be stricter than the commandments themselves. Today’s Gospel episode is a good illustration. The Book of Exodus only allows six days of work and obliges a whole day rest on the seventh day. “On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals… (Exodus 20:8-11). In defining what constitutes work, however, the religious leaders became unreasonable to the point of seeking work even in innocent acts such as picking heads of grain.
Jesus’ heart bled for the people who found the law burdensome. He said, “Come unto me you who labor and find life burdensome and I will refresh you; take my yoke upon your shoulder for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” He was referring to the law of love that he was introducing.
Jesus restored the Law to its proper place. His declaration that the Sabbath was made for man and not the other way around was an invitation to reflect on the centrality of human beings to God’s plan. In the creation narrative of Genesis, God created man only after he had prepared the world for him. God equipped the world, so to speak, before he created him. He even created him in his image and likeness and set him as master of creation. This preferential option cannot allow laws that oppress rather than empower. – Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM . Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com. Website: www.frdan.org.
May comment ka ba sa column ni Father Dan? May tanong ka ba sa kanya? I-type ang BANDERA REACT <message/ name/age/address> at i-send sa 4467.