“The Sabbath was made
for man, not man for the Sabbath.”
We
Catholics often get a bad rap for being nothing more than a bunch of rule
followers. In this Gospel passage
we learn how the Pharisees—overzealous for the Law—try to catch Jesus breaking
the rules of the Sabbath. Jesus
reminds them that the these very rules are to be followed, not in and of
themselves, but because they help us.
Take
the Sabbath. We are asked to keep
that day free from unnecessary work, homework and busyness because it is good
for us. We need a day each week to
catch up with friends, watch a game and nap—all for the glory of God.
In
this succinct response to the Pharisees tattle-tailing, Jesus also teaches us
that we must always remember two facts with respect to the “rules and
regulations” of our lives. First,
we must not be judgers of others’ conduct like the Pharisees. Second, we must remember that all of
God’s law is for our good. The
Church is the servant of God’s Law and thus the Church’s guidelines for living
is strictly for our benefit. We
must always keep this in mind especially when we struggle to understand why the
Church teaches as she does.
We
praise God today for giving us the Lord’s Day—Sunday. We thank Him for providing us with a framework in which to
live our lives and pray for the grace to trust Him and His Church all the more.
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