MONDAY, TWENTY THIRD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
1 Cor 5: 1-8 Ps 5: 5-7, 12 Lk 6: 6-11
LOVE OR LAW?
We live in the 21st century, a world that prides in its progress and technological advancements. With the advent of artificial intelligence and algorithms, we seem to have moved forward much in our lifestyle and standards. Yet how often do we find ourselves clinging to outdated rituals, rigid regulations and legalistic attitudes that suppress the spirit of love and mercy? The external progress seems not to have spilled into our interior lives. Jesus our Master gave us one eternal commandment – love one another as I have love you, as the pattern to live our lives by, the golden rule of human living.
The third commandment in the decalogue calls us to keep the sabbath holy. Which means to rest or cease. Over time, the Pharisees and Sadducees worsened it with a complex web of rules losing sight of the commandment’s original intent: communion with God and compassion for others. It is here that Jesus challenges these traditions. In today’s Gospel, Jesus heals a man suffering from paralysis of the right hand, even though it is the sabbath. Jesus acts with compassion. He teaches us a profound truth: love is never out of season. The sabbath, for Jesus is not merely a day of rest, it is a day of restoration, making space for goodness, mercy and human connection.
As Christians our Sunday, the Lord’s Day is not just for attending mass and retreating into personal rest. The church teaches us that Sunday is traditionally consecrated by Christian piety to good works and humble service of the sick, the infirm and the elderly (CCC 2186). So, the question before us is not merely whether we observe the law but how we live love. Will we be people of cold rules or warm hearts? Do we choose to enter into our own personal cocoons on the day of the Lord, and hide human charity? Or are we willing to step out of our comforts and share – receive and give – the love for which we are created? Let us choose the way of Christ: the way of love.
Response: Lead me, Lord, in your justice.
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