Who is the Sabbath For?
Jan 17: Memorial of Saint Anthony, Abbott
Today is the Feast of St. Anthony, so I did a little reading up on him:
One day in church, he heard read Matthew 19:21: "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." Not content to sit still and meditate and reflect on Jesus' words he walked out the door of the church right away and gave away all his property except what he and his sister needed to live on. On hearing Matthew 6:34, "So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today," he gave away everything else, entrusted his sister to a convent, and went outside the village to live a life of praying, fasting, and manual labor. It wasn't enough to listen to words, he had to become what Jesus said.
So you’d think we’d be reading from the 6th or 19th chapter of Matthew on Anthony’s feast day, but nope. Just the next readings in the lectionary cycle. From the little I know about St. Anthony, he’d probably be happy the Church doesn’t make a big deal out of his feast.
Somewhat appropriately on the day we celebrate someone who interpreted scripture in a radically literal way, today’s readings are about how one should interpret scripture.
Reading 1
Heb 6:10-20
Brothers and sisters: God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones. We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of hope until the end, so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who, through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises.
When God made the promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, and said, I will indeed bless you and multiply you. And so, after patient waiting, Abraham obtained the promise. Now, men swear by someone greater than themselves; for them an oath serves as a guarantee and puts an end to all argument. So when God wanted to give the heirs of his promise an even clearer demonstration of the immutability of his purpose, he intervened with an oath, so that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to hold fast to the hope that lies before us. This we have as an anchor of the soul, sure and firm, which reaches into the interior behind the veil, where Jesus has entered on our behalf as forerunner, becoming high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
In the first part of this passage, the author wants us to know God sees everything we do, but unlike the implications we heard on Saturday, this isn’t meant to be a threat, but a hopeful promise. God knows you’re doing good, even when no one else does. So don’t become disheartened when you’re not recognized for your positive contributions to the world, whether in faith or charity. It doesn’t even matter if the Pharisees accuse you of doing wrong (as in today’s Gospel), so long as God knows you’re doing the right thing.
In the second part, the author broadens his point to explain that God always fulfills His promises, because He swears upon Himself, just as He did with Abraham. Melchizedek was a priest and king who nevertheless humbled himself before Abraham, just as our priest and king, Jesus, humbled himself to become a human, and lead us “behind the veil” (i.e. into the presence of God, in Heaven).
Responsorial Psalm
111:1-2, 4-5, 9 and 10c
R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
Even with all of today’s modern technology, we can’t make food. We can grow it, cultivate it, prepare it, but we can’t assemble even a grain of wheat from its constituent parts. All food is, ultimately, a gift from God.
“He has given food to those who fear him” is probably a reference to the Israelites receiving manna from heaven while wandering the desert.1 But it can also be read as foreshadowing today's Gospel, when Jesus' apostles pluck wheat as they walk from town to town. God provides for them, even while the Pharisees chastise them. But we needn't fear the Pharisees in our lives, only God.
Alleluia
See Eph 1:17-18
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to our call.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
One reason to read the inspired word of God is to learn more about Him, and our relationship to God. It’s hard to have hope if we don’t know God’s plans.
Gospel
Mk 2:23-28
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath, his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain. At this the Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?"
He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry? How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat, and shared it with his companions?" Then he said to them, "The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath."
This passage always reminds me of that opening scene of Gladiator that’s been copied2 a million times:
Not that that’s relevant. I’ve just seen too many movies.
What we’ve got here is the Pharisees trying to criticize Jesus for not following the law as written in the sacred scripture.3
Jesus’ first response is to out-Pharisee the Pharisees. He refers to a story of David (priest and king): while on the run from Saul, David and his men ate Holy Bread, which was supposed to be reserved for priests.4
The point He’s making is, our Earthly, temporal needs must be taken care of, before we can look to higher things. It’s a bit like Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs; you can hardly be expected to give glory to God if you’re starving.
But then Jesus goes further. He points out the underlying reason for the law. We’re not supposed to remember the Sabbath Day just because it was on a list of rules to remember. God knows that people have a tendency to overwork themselves (and others). He knows we need time to slow down and reflect; that’s why he gave us the Sabbath.
Once you understand that, it’s easy to understand why it’s okay to “reap” a little on the Sabbath, whether you’re fleeing the wrath of King Saul or just wandering Judea with an itinerant rabbi.
As with the passage we read last Friday, the last line probably wasn’t spoken by Jesus to the Pharisees, but a note to readers. Jesus just had an epic rap scripture passage battle with the most educated Jews in Israel, and won. “That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath."
The film school term is homage, which is French for “stealing.”
The footnotes on the USCCB bible lead to some confusion about what, exactly, the Pharisees are complaining about. The footnote in Mark points to Dt 23:25, which says “When you go through your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pluck some of the ears with your hand, but do not put a sickle to your neighbor’s grain.” Which seems like exactly what the apostles are doing. Besides, the Pharisees specifically mention the Sabbath.
The footnote on the equivalent passage in Matthew (12:1-8) says “The picking of the heads of grain is here equated with reaping, which was forbidden on the sabbath (Ex 34:21),” but that doesn’t make sense, when you see the distinction between plucking ears and using a sickle in the Deuteronomy passage.
The version in Luke (6:1-11) finally has a footnote just says, without citation: “The two episodes recounted here deal with gathering grain and healing, both of which were forbidden on the sabbath. In his defense of his disciples’ conduct and his own charitable deed, Jesus argues that satisfying human needs such as hunger and performing works of mercy take precedence even over the sacred sabbath rest.”
I feel like if Jesus had cited Deuteronomy, the case that the Pharisees were criticizing “harvesting” would be stronger. But also, such a retort would be legalistic hair-splitting on Jesus’ part, which is exactly the sort of thing he criticizes the Pharisees for doing.
No, I think this is just a debate about the Third Commandment (Ex 20:8-11), which would make sense in the context of Jesus’ response.
This is an excessively long footnote, isn’t it?