Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time
In our first reading, Samuel has called the whole town of Bethlehem together for a banquet. Everyone is supposedly there, including Jesse and his sons, one of whom will be the next king. The sons are dressed up and looking their best. But the Lord reminds Samuel, and us, that the outward appearance is not an accurate way to judge.
Today, when we think of the Sabbath, most people don’t think twice about working, shopping, studying, doing chores, etc. Sunday is just another day of the weekend, like Saturday. From the Beginning, the Lord commanded us to avoid work on Sunday. In today’s gospel, Jesus helps us see a little better what that looks like. Is it a legalistic prohibition against anything that counts as work, or that forces someone else to work? No, Jesus says. The Sabbath was made for the people, not the other way around. It was made to benefit us, to meet our needs.
This opens a big door that we can use wrongly to say, ‘I need to work, shop, study, do chores…’ And the reality is, some work does need to be done on Sunday. We need nurses and doctors, police and firefighters, priests and ministers, every day. If the toilet overflows, we need to clean it up no matter what day it happens. As in the first reading, sometimes that means staggering our periods of rest. David got stuck with the sheep while everyone else partied, and no one was rebuked because of the arrangement. But hopefully he got Monday off. Human beings need a day off. Not taking time off is dangerous to the body and soul. The medical need for rest is well documented. Spiritually, we must remember that, if the Creator of the Universe can take a day off, nothing we do is so important that we cannot also take a day off. Nothing we are doing is more important that our God-created need to rest. God wants us to have some time to rest and enjoy life. That’s what Sabbath is for.
What is the most restful way for you to spend a day? What do you need to do so that can happen? Consider praying about it today.
—Chris Nieport