OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL (OPTIONAL MEMORIAL)

The Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath.

Do you know the very first thing that’s called “holy” in the Bible? It isn’t a place like a temple or a shrine, but a time. It’s the sabbath (Genesis 2:3).

God made the sabbath holy so that his people could join him in resting and finding refreshment in the beauty of what he had created (Exodus 31:17). From the very beginning, the sabbath has been a gift to God’s people: a sign of his eternal love for them and a celebration of our freedom from oppression. By observing the sabbath, the Jewish people enter a sacred time when they worship God and celebrate their special relationship with him.

It’s no wonder, then, that some Pharisees were ruffled by the way Jesus’ disciples seemed to disregard the sabbath. The problem was that they didn’t recognize Jesus as “Lord of the sabbath” (Matthew 12:8), so they couldn’t see that just by being with Jesus, the disciples were fulfilling God’s command. Every moment they spent with Jesus was sacred time!

What about us? The Catechism teaches that we can follow the “rhythm and spirit” of the sabbath even today (2176). Every Sunday, we can enter into a sacred time when we rest our bodies and ask God to refresh our spirits. Recalling the day when Jesus rose from the dead, we can celebrate our freedom from sin by gathering as God’s people and worshipping him. As we set aside this time to be with the Lord and each other, Jesus comes to us and offers us his grace to help us grow in holiness.

Think about how the disciples became hungry and searched for food in today’s Gospel (Matthew 12:1-8). We also grow spiritually hungry, and crave refreshment and renewal. And in his goodness, that’s exactly what our heavenly Father offers us in his gift of the Eucharist. When we eat this spiritual food, we enter “sacred time” in a special way. Sanctified by the Bread of Life and the Cup of Salvation, we join the angels in their own endless hymn of praise to the Lord.

Sunday is only two days away. How will you set aside this time and make it sacred?

“Jesus, Lord of the sabbath, I’m hungry for your rest.”

Exodus 11:10–12:14
Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18
Matthew 12:1-8

WORD AMONG US