Is it against the law on the sabbath day to do good, or to do evil; to save life, or to kill?Mk.3:4
Jesus is challenging the Pharisees' heart motivation. Are they fixated on love or the law?
Jesus usually heals out of compassion. Today's Gospel has him healing a man with a withered hand out of anger. The Pharisees' blind adherence to the law grieves him. They would rather leave a man crippled than have him healed on the sabbath.
The law has a seductive appeal to me. It's so neat, so black and white, so easy to administer. Compassion gets messy. It often involves extending mercy to someone I judge doesn't deserve it. I have to roll up my sleeves and do something for someone else rather than for me.
Am I fixated on love or the law? Today I choose to be intentional about loving.
Jesus, help me to love. It's not my natural state.
Saint Philip Neri, please pray for me.
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