Catholic Daily Mass Reading & Meditation for Saturday, 6 September 2014

Catholic Daily Mass Reading & Meditation for Saturday, 6 September 2014
Meditations: Luke 6: In Charge of the Sabbath
1-2 On a certain Sabbath Jesus was walking through a field of ripe grain. His disciples were pulling off heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands to get rid of the chaff, and eating them. Some Pharisees said, “Why are you doing that, breaking a Sabbath rule?”
3-4 But Jesus stood up for them. “Have you never read what David and those with him did when they were hungry? How he entered the sanctuary and ate fresh bread off the altar, bread that no one but priests were allowed to eat? He also handed it out to his companions.”
5 Then he said, “The Son of Man is no slave to the Sabbath; he’s in charge.”
Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath. (Luke 6:5)
Did you know the sabbath was God’s idea? It started when he commanded Moses to “remember to keep holy the sabbath day” (Exodus 20:8). Israel was to cease from her labors and rest on the sabbath, just as God rested after six days of creation. Unfortunately, instead of a time of rest, sabbath observation evolved for some people into a set of rules focusing on what they could and could not do. God’s desire to give his people rest took second place to strict observances.
But Jesus understood what the Sabbath was supposed to be. In today’s Gospel reading, he tells some of the Pharisees, “The Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath” (Luke 6:5.) In another place, he tells them, “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). God wants to bless us on the sabbath day and help us draw closer to him, not put us into a box.
As the Catechism states, “With compassion, Christ declares the sabbath for doing good rather than harm, for saving life rather than killing. The sabbath is the day of the Lord of mercies and a day to honor God” (CCC, 2173).
How do you think about Sundays? Apart from “having” to go to Mass, do you see it as a golden opportunity to worship God and let him shower his blessings on you? That’s what the sabbath—and the Eucharist in particular—is meant to be all about. It’s true that at Mass, you can find the grace and wisdom you need to deal with the worries and challenges that have been weighing on your heart all week. But it’s also true that you can experience the sweetness and refreshment of receiving Jesus’ Body and Blood in the presence of your brothers and sisters in Christ.
So be expectant tomorrow! During Mass, believe that you are one with the body of Christ. Tell yourself that you are a beloved son or daughter of God. Then when you go to Communion, ask Jesus to reveal himself to you in the way you need him most. Let him bless you and refresh you for the week ahead!
“Jesus, I long to worship you and to receive the spiritual and physical refreshment you want to give me tomorrow. Thank you for the gift of your sabbath rest!” Amen!
1 Corinthians 4:6 All I’m doing right now, friends, is showing how these things pertain to Apollos and me so that you will learn restraint and not rush into making judgments without knowing all the facts. It’s important to look at things from God’s point of view. I would rather not see you inflating or deflating reputations based on mere hearsay.
7-8 For who do you know that really knows you, knows your heart? And even if they did, is there anything they would discover in you that you could take credit for? Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? You already have all you need. You already have more access to God than you can handle. Without bringing either Apollos or me into it, you’re sitting on top of the world—at least God’s world—and we’re right there, sitting alongside you!
9-13 It seems to me that God has put us who bear his Message on stage in a theater in which no one wants to buy a ticket. We’re something everyone stands around and stares at, like an accident in the street. We’re the Messiah’s misfits. You might be sure of yourselves, but we live in the midst of frailties and uncertainties. You might be well-thought-of by others, but we’re mostly kicked around. Much of the time we don’t have enough to eat, we wear patched and threadbare clothes, we get doors slammed in our faces, and we pick up odd jobs anywhere we can to eke out a living. When they call us names, we say, “God bless you.” When they spread rumors about us, we put in a good word for them. We’re treated like garbage, potato peelings from the culture’s kitchen. And it’s not getting any better.
14-16 I’m not writing all this as a neighborhood scold just to make you feel rotten. I’m writing as a father to you, my children. I love you and want you to grow up well, not spoiled. There are a lot of people around who can’t wait to tell you what you’ve done wrong, but there aren’t many fathers willing to take the time and effort to help you grow up. It was as Jesus helped me proclaim God’s Message to you that I became your father. I’m not, you know, asking you to do anything I’m not already doing myself.
Psalm 145:17 Everything God does is right—
    the trademark on all his works is love.
18 God’s there, listening for all who pray,
    for all who pray and mean it.
19 He does what’s best for those who fear him—
    hears them call out, and saves them.
20 God sticks by all who love him,
    but it’s all over for those who don’t.
21 My mouth is filled with God’s praise.
    Let everything living bless him,

    bless his holy name from now to eternity!
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