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Scripture: Lectionary 437 Colossians 1:24-2:3. Psalm 62:6-7.9. Luke 6:6-11:

Choose life! Choose what is good! Jesus is teaching us what he and the leaders in the synagogue have learned from the great covenant book of Deuteronomy—the second law or better “instruction” of God to the People Israel. The great commandment of love and mercy is clearly presented in this fifth book of the Torah, yet, those in the synagogue who were listening to Jesus were more concerned about observing the letter of the law which according to them and their interpretation in this pericope from Luke was that healing on a Sabbath broke the Law! Jesus returns to the spirit of the Torah and the heart of the message of the second law as given in Deuteronomy, the law of love and mercy. Therefore, he heals the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath and then teaches the meaning of what the Sabbath is all about. Man made rules are not above the rules of the Spirit of God given in the Torah. Jesus had already said that the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath.” Jesus did a good act full of mercy and love and healing this person and showed the true meaning of love and mercy on a Sabbath. Our human laws and our interpretation of God’s laws about the Sabbath do not match the wisdom and goodness of the One who created the Torah. Jesus is the true interpreter of the Torah and he brings back to life that which was dead and encourages us to listen to the laws of love and mercy especially on the Sabbath when we have the time to pray and think about what these laws of God are all about.

On this day, we can easily join the man who probably prayed similarly to the prayer offered in the Psalm Response and the verses of Psalm 62:6-7,9. “Only at God be at rest (a reminder of Sabbath rest) , my soul, for from God comes my hope. He alone is my rock and my salvation (healing), my stronghold, shall not be disturbed.”

N.B. Note that healing is implied in the word for salvation and rest is associated with the Sabbath rest.

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Scripture: Lectionary 438. Tues. Sept 6,2011:Colossians 2:6-15. Psalm 145:1-2,8-9.10-11. Luke 6:12-19:

Before choosing the twelve apostles Jesus went out to the mountain and prayed throughout the night. He was in communion with God and then in coming down the mountain he chooses the twelve who will follow him more closely. Luke, the Evangelist of Prayer gives us this pericope and then names the apostles one by one from Peter or Simon down to Judas. The lists will appear in the Synoptic Gospels and somewhat less than the twelve will be named in John’s Gospel. Oral tradition is not always a perfect recording as time rolls on. This gives the scholars something to work out and interpret for us in a reasonable way that we call exegesis. They try above all to be scientifically correct in what they say. Tradition however in its oral quality is handed down without such exactitude. The message is what is meaningful and we know that Jesus did have twelve apostles despite the confusion in who is who as we get farther down the list of those named!

Jesus’ prayer is what is central to the message. Before we make important decisions, prayer should be a part of our decision making process. Jesus prayer therefore is a model for our own. We are encouraged to pray alone and are also encouraged to pray in a community that often should be involved in our decision making. That community could be the family, the Church or parish, or the religious community or branch of a community to which we belong.

Prayer is at the heart of our life journey with Jesus in his mission of bringing the Gospel to all peoples. Prayer is essential to the life of a disciple of Jesus. Fortunately, Luke is the Evangelist who will constantly remind us of the need for praying more often than the other Evangelists. He does this in both of his inspired writings.

Already in his first chapter he offers the Mother of Jesus as another mode for praying as a disciple of Jesus. She is a model for the Church at prayer and for the individual member of the Church who is to ponder over and meditate on God’s words and events as she did. We find her at prayer in the upper room where the eleven apostles pray with the friends of Jesus both men and women. That scene makes us think of her as Queen of the Apostles and as the first disciple of Jesus when the Holy Spirit came upon her and God’s Word became flesh.

Mary will offer us many modes of prayer in her life as seen within the Gospels. She even has left us her great prayer the Magnificat which the church at prayer uses every evening. Often at the last prayer of the Church called Compline a Marian prayer antiphon is prayed or sung: Salve Regina, or Regina Caeli, or Alma Redemptors. Mary keeps reminding us that prayer is at the heart of what it means to be a follower of Jesus and an apostle of Jesus.

We could start each day by thanking God for the gift of life to serve other another day that breaks upon us. If we know the Magnificat by heart we could pray it as our opening prayer for the day. Luke gives us his tradition about this in Luke 1:46-56. May our souls that is our selves at prayer make great the name of the Lord this day. Amen.