GOD’S WORD

2nd week in ordinary time Ps 111:1-2, 4-5, 9 & 10c/ 1st Reading: Heb 6:10-20 / Gospel: Mk 2:23-28

Reflection:

“Lord of the Sabbath“Once again, the ever scandalized Pharisees, attack Jesus in today’s Gospel episode for the “sin“of breaking the “Sabbath Law on mandatory rest. The Sabbath obligation of rest was so strictly observed by the pious Jews. They were probably asking “How could this Rabbi be so tolerating of the violation of the Sabbath Rest by his disciples?“

But Jesus confronts them with the example of no less than King David who ordered his men to eat the bread of offering

that was normally reserved only for the priests. In this incident Jesus was in the first place pointing out the higher law of charity over mere ritual rulings. Even today at times we can fall on the too legalistic interpretation of laws that we forget that “higit sa lahat, ay ang makabubuti sa tao!”

In the second place, Jesus was already indicating that as the son of David he was inaugurating a “new order of things“(refer to the image of the “new wine skins for new wine“in yesterday’s Gospel.) Jesus then makes a pronouncement that must have further disturbed the Pharisees when he said that he was “Master of the Sabbath!“In other words, that Jesus had the authority to promulgate “new“laws! That He was equal to God!