MY daily reflection and prayer:
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time
Dear my friends,
Here is the Gospel for us today according to Luke 6:1-5
On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grain fields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” And Jesus answered, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” And he said to them, “The Son of man is lord of the Sabbath.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.
***
THE Gospel today tells us that some of the Pharisees confront Jesus on the issue of the Sabbath rest. They scold Jesus’ disciples for they pluck and eat some heads of grain on the Sabbath day. They say to the disciples, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”
In defending his disciples, Jesus argues from the Scriptures that human need has precedence over ritual custom. He quotes the experience of David and his men who in their hunger, they ate of the holy bread offered in the Temple (1 Samuel 21:2-7).
In fact, no one was allowed to eat this bread except the priests because it represented the very presence of God. But David understood that human need took precedence over rules and ritual regulations, so he and his men ate the holy bread offered in the Temple.
We understand here that Jesus’ reference to the bread of the Presence alludes to the true bread from heaven which he offers to all of us who believe in him. In the Perpetual Adoration of the Eucharist we worship Jesus Christ, the Son of David, and the Son of Man, who declares himself as the Holy Bread from heaven. He is the Lord of the Sabbath.
Let’s pray: Lord Jesus Christ, you defend your disciples. You even heal on the Sabbath and show your mercy to those in need. All who are burdened can find true rest and refreshment in you. So we seek rest and refreshment in you, Lord. Please, refresh us with your presence in the Eucharist and Adoration forever and ever. Amen.
Kredit foto: Ilustrasi (Ist)
