Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, each and every one of us are reminded that all of us have been made to be God’s own beloved and adopted children, to be His own sons and daughters. That is why, the Lord has brought us all His light, truth and love, gathering all of us and showing us how we should live our lives that we may be truly worthy of Him, righteous and just in all of our actions, works and deeds. We should not allow ourselves to be easily swayed by worldly temptations and other distractions which may end up leading us down the wrong paths, away from the Lord, His salvation and grace. There are many things which can turn us away from this path of righteousness and grace, including pride, arrogance, greed, desires and worldly attachments, among other things that had led so many to their downfall.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans in which the Apostle highlighted to the faithful people of God in Rome how they have all been liberated from the tyranny and dominion of sin, by the power and grace of God. Hence, since the people of God had been adopted by Him to be His own beloved sons and daughters, they are no longer subjected to sin and its power and dominion, and consequently, they all should live their lives henceforth according to the path which the Lord Himself has shown to them, in obeying His Law and commandments, and in doing what is right, virtuous and just in the sight of God and mankind alike. All of us, as God’s beloved people, should have true and genuine faith in Him, and show proper understanding and appreciation of what God’s Law and commandments are, and how we should live our lives faithfully according to them.

As highlighted in our Gospel passage today, there was another confrontation between the Lord and some of the members of the Pharisees as He was carrying out His mission among the people. Those Pharisees were unhappy that the Lord performed His miracles and signs on the Sabbath day in the synagogue, as He healed a woman who had been afflicted and crippled by the possession of evil spirit for eighteen years. The Lord had pity on her and showed her His kindness, love and mercy, casting out the evil spirit from her and liberating her from the dominion of Satan and his fellow demonic forces. Yet, what those Pharisees, synagogue officials and those who opposed the Lord focused on instead, was the fact that the Lord performed His miracle and wonders on the day of the Sabbath, that was a taboo and abhorrent thing for them.

Contextually, we must understand that the Pharisees were one of the few groups of influential Jewish community leaders and powerful figures who were particularly concerned with the way how the Law of God, the rules and commandments, the rituals and practices of the people of God were to be carried out as meticulously and detailed as possible. They took a rather rigid and strict interpretation of the Law, focusing and emphasising a lot on the letter and details of the Law, which ended up distracting them and preventing them from truly appreciating and understanding the spirit of the Law, that is the reason, meaning and purpose behind the Law which God had granted to us all, His beloved people. They basically ended up obeying the Law blindly without truly understanding why they did so.

In this case, many of the actions of the Pharisees were truly hypocritical as the Lord Himself pointed it out to them. They criticised the Lord and uttered such foul words when they saw Him healing the woman who had suffered for a whole period of eighteen years, and they could not even let that one Sabbath day go. They took offense because the Lord performed His miracle on that day, as they thought of and considered the Sabbath day as being a sacrosanct day in which no action or activity can be done at all. However, this is actually a misunderstanding and confusion about the purpose and meaning of the Law of the Sabbath as the Lord originally intended it. The Lord never intended the Sabbath Law to restrict and restrain His people from doing what is necessary and good, and He certainly did not want anyone to criticise a good action being done on that day.

The Pharisees were also being hypocritical as when their own flock, sheep and goats and other things need to be settled on that day, this would be done. Hence, how could the suffering of this woman who had suffered for so long be overlooked or for her to be made to wait even for one day longer? This was why the Lord was angered and frustrated at the stubbornness that the Pharisees had shown at that time, at their refusal to listen to Him and for their stubborn opposition to God and His works. The Lord has shown them what His Law and commandments are truly about, and that is to teach, show and guide us in the path of His love, compassion and mercy. The Law should not be misused for one’s personal ambitions and desires, and they should not be misunderstood as merely sets of laws, customs, practices, rituals and all other things that are merely done out of blind obedience without proper understanding and appreciation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence remind ourselves of the obligation and the calling which we have received as Christians, as God’s beloved people, to do God’s will with the right intention and understanding of God’s will and intentions for us. Let us all be truly faithful and devoted to Him, by showing the love that He Himself had taught and shown us, in the love and kindness He has shown to the suffering woman, in healing and helping her to come out from her predicament. Let us all remember that great and most generous love that God has always shown us, and hence, strive to love the Lord ever more wholeheartedly and commit ourselves ever more to His cause. And as the Law and commandments of God have shown us, we should also show the same kind of love to our fellow brothers and sisters around us as well, in every opportunities and places that we are in.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father continue to guide us all and help us to pass through the journey of faith and life, where we may have to face and endure difficulties and challenges that may appear in our path. We must not lose hope and faith in God just because of those challenges, trials and hardships. We have to keep our trust in God and follow Him ever more courageously and with greater love, knowing that God Himself has loved us all so much, and hence, passing on and showing that same love in our world today, where there are plenty of hatred and ignorance of God’s Law, commandments and ways. May all of us be the great examples of our Christian faith and beliefs, and show them through our genuine and real actions, at all times, and may God bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours to glorify Him. Amen.