A Man with a Withered Hand
http://graceandspace.org
Mk 3:1-6
1[Jesus] entered the synagogue. There was a man there who had a withered hand. 2They watched him closely to see if he would cure him on the sabbath so that they might accuse him. 3He said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up here before us.” 4Then
he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to
do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” But they remained
silent. 5Looking around at them with anger and grieved at
their hardness of heart, he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He
stretched it out and his hand was restored. 6The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel with the Herodians against him to put him to death.
Reflection:
Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath? The
incident of the cure on the Sabbath of the man with a withered hand is
another clear illustration of the principle enunciated by Jesus: “The
sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.”
Some
people, like the Pharisees in the Gospel, do not see the truth that
what is truly beneficial to man is what pleases God. They do not see the
intimate link of the commandment to love God above all things and to
love human beings as we love ourselves. If only they place themselves in
the shoes of the man with the withered hand, the Pharisees, too, will
rejoice that Jesus cures him.
Rejoice at the good that happens to others
as God rejoices in doing them good.
No comments:
Post a Comment