Gospel: Mark 2:18-22
The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were accustomed to fast.
People came to Jesus and objected,
“Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered them,
“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?
As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.
But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
and then they will fast on that day.
No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak.
If he does, its fullness pulls away,
the new from the old, and the tear gets worse.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins,
and both the wine and the skins are ruined.
Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
The Mass intention is for Christine W and all her loved one’s.
Reflection:
Nico once acknowledged his father’s faithfulness to his vocation as an inspiration to his own calling as a priest. In today’s Gospel, we note how people objected to Jesus’ disciples not fasting like those of John the Baptist and the Pharisees. Fr Donald Haggerty comments “Self-denying mortifications (such as fasting) can be managed simply by will power alone and lack of love, without which sacrifice falsifies its name. What our crucified Lord Jesus would prefer form us is something more serious in love…He wants sacrificial acts in the inner life that can unleash a fire within the undercurrents of our soul…These acts inflame our soul’s passion for God; afterwards, inevitably, they compel actions of generosity for others…” To remain faithful in one’s vocation can be difficult. Temptations to seek our will instead of God’s must be overcome. Conflicting priorities must be addressed. Sacrifices of various kinds must be made. If we want to do something more serious in love, we must be changed from old wineskins to fresh wineskins, from old cloaks to new cloaks.
- How important is fasting for you? Why or why not?
- How far would you go to offer yourself to God?
- How does your love for God translate into love for others?
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your Word today. May the sacrifices we make each day be pleasing to You and advance the peace and salvation of the world. Amen.
