Posted by The WORD in other words (2018) by Fr Dante Barril SVD – Catholic Trade Manila
Friday 15th Week in Ordinary Time
During election time we hear the old joke about the politician who promises to build a bridge and who upon being informed that the place does not have a river would quip that he’d create one.
We read in the Gospel how Jesus and the Pharisees argue about the Sabbath Law – Jesus defends his disciples who picked the heads of grain on a Sabbath against the Pharisees who insist that the former transgressed the law. In his argument Jesus shows how this law has been violated before and ends by insisting that the “Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
The purpose of the Sabbath’s demand for people to stop and rest is so that they can create a space in their lives for the Lord to fill. The law leads to the Lord. The law is not the Lord. And if the Lord is present the law is not needed.
A place that does not have a river has no need of a bridge. The law is like a bridge that connects people to the Lord. There is a perilous river of uncertainly underneath it. If the Lord is present people will no longer need a bridge, unless they want to run away from Him. The river underneath turns calm and clear.
Ultimately, the Pharisees’ greatest mistake was not their failure to interpret the law correctly but their inability to recognize the Lord who was standing by very closely.
May we be spared from this same mistake.
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