Friday of 15th Week, even numbered year “At that time Jesus went through the cornfields one Sabbath day. His disciples were hungry and began to pick ears of corn and eat them.The Pharisees noticed this and said to him ’Look, your disciples are doing something that is forbidden on the Sabbath.”
The answer Jesus gave to the Pharisees about the question of the picked ears of corn makes enter into an understanding of the Word of God. He draws us into a great confidence and a pondering of the thoughts of God’s Heart, of God who is nothing but Tenderness and Goodness.
The thoughts that are in the Heart of Jesus draw us into God’s Love. We want to enter into this Love and to remain there.
The disciples who are with Jesus have this experience of Jesus’ Love for them. He brings out great liberty in this new group of disciples.
They are hungry so they eat the seeds contained in the ears of corn.
As far as Jesus is concerned, religion isn’t a question of ’what you should do or not do’, but it is about entering into the Love of God, recognising all the good things God has done for us, giving Him thanks and loving Him along with all those He gives us.
But we have a hard time loving others because we don’t love ourselves. We need to remain in God’s Infinite Love. It is a difficult challenge for religious people who are too concerned with doing their ’duty’.
We have the experience that our own life is turned in on itself, that we are neither tenderness nor goodness and mercy for our sisters and brothers.
In this Gospel passage Jesus manifests the freedom his disciples have acquired , we see this as they walk through the corn fields.
“Jesus said to the Pharisees ’Have you not read what David did when he and his followers were hungry-how he went into the House of God and they ate the loaves of the offering although nether he nor his followers were permitted to eat them, but only the priests?”
The literal observance of the prescriptions given for the Sabbath has to give up its place for Mercy.
Jesus’ speech pushes us to observe the Sabbath by accomplishing its finality, in being conformed to God’s Will, He who showers gifts on his People.
This will is reduced to Mercy, to reciprocal Love, to Compassion.
If the observance of the sabbatical precept has an offence to charity in it, it doesn’t correspond to God’s Will.
Jesus shows that during this time in the world the Sabbath where God rests is to watch over how the world works and the destinies of humankind. He never stops exerting upon his creatures his Providence and Benevolence ’until the end of the world’ .
The real Sabbath when God will rest from all his works will be the future world, when ’pain, sadness and groaning’s will take away.’, and when God will be ’everything in all things .’
Jesus speaks tirelessly about simplicity of his Heart, he is so simple and still we don’t understand Him.
What is most simple seems the hardest thing to bring about.
Jesus doesn’t ask us to do hard things, to do heroic actions, he desires one thing alone from us : that we enter into his Love and remain there.
“Or again, have you not read in the Law that on the Sabbath day the Temple priests break the Sabbath without committing any fault? Now here I ell you, is something greater than the Temple. For the Son of man is master of the Sabbath.”
Jesus deplores the legalistic haggling of the Pharisees : ’What I desire is mercy not sacrifices.’
Jesus’ disciples do not observe the Law like the Pharisees do, for the rigorous application of the Law is a loveless prison.
The religious behaviour of the Pharisees makes us think of people who struggle under a heavy load. Their lips announce the law to a tee, but their heart is insensitive for the Love of God and neighbour.
Jesus’ disciples behaviour appears strange to the eyes of the Pharisees. Yret it translates something new : by this behaviour they want to show that Jesus’ coming throws everything up in the air.
Their Master no longer prescribes complicated things to practice, but commandments of Love to keep. This is why they no longer have Laws to respect, but a person to love. They have learned to love according to the intelligence of the heart. With this intelligence the Law becomes an inner one for whoever wishes to be a disciple of Jesus in Love and freedom.
The Holy Spirit leads us towards the whole Truth which is a life of love nd of freedom.