Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
In today’s Gospel, the Pharisees criticize Christ and his disciples for working on the sabbath, the holy day of rest. But Jesus rebukes them: “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.” How have the Pharisees misunderstood the meaning of the sabbath?
God Himself rests on the seventh day of creation – He invites us to imitate this on the seventh day of each week. But the invitation is not merely a mandate to avoid work, as the Pharisees think. The invitation is to do what God does, to be more like Him, even in rest. That is why the disciples are right to follow Jesus, to labor for him, even on the sabbath: they are simply going where the Lord is going, doing what he is doing, trying to be more like him.
How do we use our time on the sabbath, or during any free time? While we need to take a break from labor, do we occupy our time off with idleness, or with what is actually life-giving? Are we using that time to become better versions of ourselves, more joyous, more loving, more Christ-like? Today, let’s ask for the grace to direct every moment, even our moments of rest, to the imitation of Christ.