Live To Love

The Lord Jesus cured a man with a withered hand on a Sabbath. According to Jewish Laws, it is forbidden. But He did it not before He gave His teaching; " I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?" Jesus was a Jew, a very pious Jew. His parents reared Him as one. He was subjected to everything  Jewish boy should undergo. He knew its teachings from His parents. He knew the Law on the Sabbath. But He was also God's Son. He knew the spirit of those laws. He knew the purpose and importance of the Sabbath Law and all Jewish Laws. He took advantage of this situation to show them the real intent of the Law which is to be a good child of God and to merit receive salvation. The Laws were not given only to be followed literally but to imbibe and live its spirit which will save.

In my ministry as a priest, I usually follow a schedule so that I could effectively attend to the needs of my parishioners and to give myself time to prepare well in disposing those commitments. Once I had a mass at six in the evening in our parish. Half an hour before the time I was already busy preparing myself. But just minutes before the mass, a call from my secretary came telling me that a woman was in the office asking for a priest to visit and give the Sacrament of Anointing to her dying mother. Immediately I told her to wait for me and I will go with her. I gave instructions to my secretary to inform the people at mass to wait because I  would be attending to a dying person. I was hoping that they will understand. But even if they did not, going to the dying person was the right decision. It was not that hard for me anymore to make the decision. Although I was committed to the mass, the soul of a sick person took priority. I need not relate here in detail the sad story of a sick person I rejected when I was a young priest. In brief, what happened was I decided to preside over an scheduled mass first before going to that sick person. Unfortunately, the person died before I arrived. The family was angry at me but I was thankful that later they were able to forgive me.

After the visit, I rushed back to the parish to preside in the mass I left for a while. I was told that some left but many stayed and even prayed for the sick person. I was sad for those who left (unless they had important schedules too!) but I was happy for those who stayed and even prayed for the sick I visited.

We always hear some lawyers and even some non-lawyers cry out the Latin dictum, "Dura lex sed lex!", meaning, "The law maybe harsh but that is the law!" Whoever said that and whatever it meant to him, the truth about who the servant and the master still faces us. The fact that it is harsh renders it useless and illegal! For Jesus, the law is the servant and men are its master. Of course, the ultimate Master is God for He created everything. But according to God's purpose, the law must serve man. Man should not be enslaved by the law.