Word to the Wise
Wednesday, June 3, 2015 - Wednesday in the 9th Week in Ordinary Time
[Tob 3:1-11a, 16-17a and Mark 12:18-27]"Are you not misled because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?"
JUNE 3, 2015 ST. CHARLES LWANGA AND COMPANIONS
[Tobit 3:1-11a, 16-17a and Mark 12:18-27]
"Are you not misled because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?"
The Pharisees, chief priests and elders have had their turn in the last couple of days. Now it is the turn of the Sadducees. These folks were aristocrats in the Jewish community and had developed a "live and let live" attitude toward the Roman occupiers. They also accepted only the first five books of the Scriptures, the Torah, as a basis of faith. (Other Jews accepted the psalms and prophets, etc.) This forms the background of their "trick question." It is almost comical but from the viewpoint of the poor lady it is a tough situation. She loses seven husbands (cf. also the first scripture today from Tobit for a similar story) because of a law in Leviticus that was aimed at keeping a family together. If a man died, his brother was obliged to take his widow as a wife. The Sadducees did not believe in resurrection of the dead, so they concoct an absurd thing about marital status after the resurrection. Jesus responds with the quote above, and then demolishes their argument using the very scripture that they accept! He also points out that marriage is something for this life, not the next life.
I have always found Jesus' line to be a good reminder about knowing "the Scriptures and the power of God." Manipulation of the Bible for selfish or political gain is a terrible thing. The scriptures should always be approached with respect and reverence, even when they can help us laugh at ourselves. If we pay attention or use such a process as "Lectio Divina" (a medieval way of praying with the scripture), we will not be misled like the Sadducees. AMEN
config
view
logs
3840.0 KB
99 ms
4
