Word to the Wise
Monday, September 11, 2017 - Monday in the 23th Week in Ordinary Time
[Col 1:24—2:3 and Luke 6:6-11]On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the Sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, "Come up and stand before us." And he rose and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, "I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?" Looking around at them all, he then said to him, "Stretch out your hand." He did so and his hand was restored. But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus. [Luke]
Prior to this point in the Gospel According to Luke, the evangelist has been describing the ministry of Jesus. There is teaching with authority, healing and the contact with "sinners" at table. The first inklings we have of opposition showed up when Jesus called Levi (Matthew) the tax collector. In today's scene, Jesus continues his healing, but he does it on a Sabbath. This is a direct challenge to the scribes and Pharisees. Healing was considered "work," which in their view was explicitly forbidden on the sabbath. Earlier Jesus, when challenged by the scribes and Pharisees about his disciples pulling grain and eating it on a sabbath, proclaimed himself "Lord of the sabbath." All of this is part of the broad portrait of Jesus in this gospel.
This broad portrait shows Jesus as someone "new" and someone who is bringing a new order of priorities. Love of neighbor takes priority over love of law. To the religious "establishment," this new order of priorities is anathema. They will accuse Jesus of blasphemy. It is not just that Jesus is breaking a rule, important as sabbath worship was, it is that he is threatening the whole "establishment." If he is "Lord of the sabbath," he is more powerful than the self-proclaimed guardians of the sabbath. The "anti-establishment" figure is a well-known literary device, but in Jesus we have God as the anti-establishment figure. That establishment is human in its creation. Jesus comes to set things aright.
Some of the anti-establishment theme is present in Pope Francis' ministry, which has certainly upset some folks in the church. But we find it anywhere the Church takes a position that is counter to certain positions in our society. The combination of pro-life and pro-immigrant positions of the American bishops against powerful sentiments in the USA is a good example. In daily life, we may find ourselves opposed by political powers because of our religious beliefs. Some of these powers may even consider themselves to be loyal Catholics! We can only point to the example of Jesus and the newness and freshness of his teaching and actions. What were his priorities? AMEN
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