Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 21, 2020
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. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?”
And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need of food? He entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and he gave some to his companions.”
Then he said to them, “The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; so the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”
The days of only working Monday through Friday are a thing of the past. In today’s technological age, we have email at our fingertips 24/7 and the ability to work in a myriad of locations beyond the traditional office setting. This has been both a blessing and a curse—the flexibility provides us with choice as to when and how we work, yet the urge to constantly check for emails can mean we never truly “turn off.”
In this Gospel, the Pharisees criticize the disciples for engaging in labor not permissible on the Sabbath, and Jesus condemns their judgment. He teaches that the Sabbath was created for us, to provide a dedicated time to give thanks to God. Jesus is helping the Pharisees correct their priorities in this Gospel—they should not be so consumed with the minutiae of the law that they lose sight of its purpose: to deepen our love for God and one another.
Though Jesus corrects the Pharisees, he does not abolish the Sabbath. In fact, Christians have a special reason to observe the Sabbath: Jesus rose from the dead on a Sunday morning. Celebrating Sunday as the day of resurrection is one of the oldest Christian traditions—it was one of the first ways in which the first followers of Jesus marked this momentous event. Over time, Christians transferred their observation of the Saturday Sabbath to Sunday, layering on to it their commemoration of the resurrection.
The challenge for us today is to ensure we don’t become slaves to our phones and technology, allowing it to eclipse any semblance of a Sabbath when we should be resting and reflecting. Sunday should be a special day for Christians.
As a working mom of two young children, my life seems to be in a constant state of chaos as I juggle work and parenting tasks. I hear Jesus calling me in this Gospel to examine my priorities. As the new year begins, I hope to balance myself more—I will strive to make a concerted effort to carve out time for myself when I can reflect and be with God. I realize I won’t get it right all the time, and this Gospel reminds me that’s okay. The Sabbath was created for us, to help us grow in love.
Prayer
Lord God, how marvelous are your deeds, holy and awesome is your name. You are Lord and master of all things, of even the Sabbath. May we always strive to keep holy the Lord’s Day and live every day as the gift it is from you. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Agnes is one of the most famous early Christian martyrs and is mentioned in one of the Eucharistic prayers of the Mass. She is a patron saint of those seeking chastity and purity because of the legend around her martyrdom.
The story is told that Agnes was a stunningly beautiful girl of thirteen who lived in Rome when Emperor Diocletian began violently persecuting Christians in 303. Young nobles asked for her hand, but she declared herself the bride of Christ. Rebuffed, the young men formally accused her of being a Christian, and she was arrested and brought to trial.
The judge first began to entice her to deny her faith; she flatly refused. He soon turned to threats, and when they had no effect, he had instruments of torture brought forth. Agnes only grew in joy.
The judge knew she valued her purity above all, and threatened to expose her in a house of prostitution, that anyone in the city could come to defile her. “You may stain your sword with my blood,” she said, “but you will never be able to profane my body, which is consecrated to Christ.” The men who approached her in the brothel were awed by her holiness and left her alone.
Her suitors were by now enraged at her stubbornness, and they enticed the judge to order her beheaded. It is said that she went to the place of her execution as joyfully as if she were headed to her wedding.
This legend cannot be proven true, and is likely full of elaboration. Based on archeological evidence, however, it is true that a young girl of thirteen, a virgin named Agnes, was martyred in Rome and honored for her sacrifice. A church was built over her tomb, and her relics venerated.
Agnes is often represented with a lamb because the Latin word for lamb, agnus, resembles her name. Additionally, some traditions say that she was killed by being stabbed in the throat—similar to how lambs are slaughtered.
On this date every year, two white lambs are blessed in the church in Rome that is dedicated to her. The lambs are cared for until it is time for their shearing, and their wool is woven into pallia, small round collars. The pallia are laid upon the altar above the tomb of St. Peter and then sent to new archbishops around the world as a symbol of their authority and union with the pope.
St. Agnes is represented in today's featured image of the mural from the walls of the Basilica.
St. Agnes, the courageous young girl who placed faithfulness over death—pray for us!