Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 6, 1- 5
While Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath,
his disciples were picking the heads of grain,
rubbing them in their hands, and eating them.
Some Pharisees said,
“Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Have you not read what David did
when he and those who were with him were hungry?
How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering,
which only the priests could lawfully eat,
ate of it, and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.”
Phariseeism
1. Going through. This refers to walking along the path of your life. Walk along just as Jesus does in today’s Gospel, even if it’s hard for you. There are two great enemies that can complicate your life. Both are within you: depression and suffocating anxiety. Anxiety can paralyze you, it can overwhelm you with fear and unrealistic thoughts, leading you to fantasize and to start drawing conclusions, closing yourself in. On the other hand, there’s depression, which is different from sadness, since it draws you into negativity and isolation. Both extremes disrupt your sense of self and happiness.
2. It is not allowed. Relying on structured religion to address personal struggles can limit openness to new experiences and prevent seeking help from others. You can fall into a structured or fanatical religion, where you want to use God for your own structure, your anxiety or your depression. Don’t shut yourself off to what’s new, live naturally and seek support when needed, as everyone relies on others at times. Jesus encourages a simple, unstructured life, and God seeks to satisfy your hunger, to fulfil your needs.
3. What can’t be done. We can fall into the temptation of being like policemen or customs officers, stating what everyone can or cannot do or say. We should not try to rule or control what those around us are doing all the time. Maturity involves recognizing your own limits and needs, and living with self-acceptance and freedom, as God’s child. Understanding what you can and can’t do, and embracing your own path, which God has offered to you, leads to true maturity and freedom.
