Thursday September 16, 2021

But what is it that goes wrong ?

The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Mark 2.27

In chapter 5 of the Gospel according to John, Jesus healed a man who had been sick for thirty-eight years. In chapter 9, he restores sight to a man blind from birth. One can easily imagine the overflowing happiness of these two men. Their life will be transformed from top to bottom. A bright future awaits them.

But both are taken to task by the religious, the “specialists” of God.

Now is not a good day to be healed ; worse, it is forbidden since it is the Sabbath during which no one is to work ! And they were sifted through repetitive questions. This Jesus certainly worked miracles, but he should have done it another day.

It is a cold shower for these sick people and also for Jesus. These religious people professing to serve God place great importance on obeying rules that are not even written in their law. But where is the compassion for these two sick people and the joy they should have felt upon their recovery ?

Observing rituals by ticking boxes to give yourself a clear conscience is undoubtedly easier than genuinely loving your neighbor.

We know that the human heart is the same in all times. This should make us think. Could it be that I, too, place more importance on doing things "the right way" than on the empathy that I might show for my neighbor ?

Elfriede Eugene

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Proposed reading : Gospel according to John, chapter 9 verses 13 to 34.

Source (Live Today)