Monday, March 19, 2007
Lent Reading Day 23
Plucking Grain of the Sabbath:
Today's story seems so distant and different than what we live today. I mean who goes into the field to eat g
rain...you go to Farmer Joe's or Safeway to buy some bread, or if you're lucky enough walk to La Farine. Who cares if these guys were picking stuff on the sabbath. The pharisees aren't angry that the disciples were stealing, extorting from farmers, or protesting the national farm bill...but that they were disrespecting God by "working" on the day of rest. Jesus reminds them that the sabbath commandment wasn't about following rules, but about celebrating life, recognizing our inter- dependence upon others, and honoring God for creating us with such honor. How often do we turn things around....making rituals that invite us to live life fully into rules that regulate our livelihoods to death. What in us makes us so often choose death over life in that way? Whether parents with children, seniors with younger folks, or leaders with those they govern, we tend to dumb things down, destroy creativity, energy and liberty with rules, nitpicking, and regulations that beat us down and divide us. Why is LIFE so hard to choose? What is it about freedom with purpose that's so often so scary to us? What are we - like the Pharisees in this story - afraid of losing?
No comments:
Post a Comment