Contemplating today's Gospel
Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)
Saul answered Samuel: «I did indeed obey the Lord and fulfill the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought back Agag, and I have destroyed Amalek under the ban. But from the spoil the men took sheep and oxen, the best of what had been banned, to sacrifice to the Lord their God in Gilgal».
But Samuel said: «Does the Lord so delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obedience to the command of the Lord? Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission than the fat of rams. For a sin like divination is rebellion, and presumption is the crime of idolatry. Because you have rejected the command of the Lord, he, too, has rejected you as ruler».
«Why do you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth, though you hate discipline and cast my words behind you?».
«When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it? Or do you think that I am like yourself? I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes. He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God».
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.”
“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?”
Fr. Joaquim VILLANUEVA i Poll (Barcelona, Spain)Today, we can see that, besides fasting on the Day of Atonement (cf. Lev 16:29-34), the Jewish people observe many other days of fasting, both public and private. Days of fast manifested mourning, penance, purification, preparation for a feast or a mission, demand of God's grace, etc. Pious Jews considered fasting an act of virtue of their religion which pleased God. One who fasts addresses God in an attitude of humility; he implores forgiveness for his separation from God while depriving himself of those things that often cause the separation.
That Jesus does not instill this practice into His disciples and followers comes as a surprise for John's disciples and for the Pharisees. They cannot understand it. But Jesus gives them a fundamental reason: “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?” (Mk 2:19). For Israel's prophets, the bridegroom signifies God Himself, faithful Yahweh, and His divine love for men (in contrast to Israel, His not always so faithful spouse). Hence, Jesus is tantamount to Yahweh, and here He declares His divinity: He calls His disciples “the bridegroom's friends”, and those who are with Him do not need to fast for they are not separated from him.
The Church has remained faithful to Christ's teaching on fasting which, though coming from the prophets and even being a natural and spontaneous practice in many religions, our Lord confirms with a new meaning. Fasting can be used as preparation; it strengthens prayer and contemplation. Jesus fasts in the desert as a preparation for His public life.
Many poor people, not unacquainted with shabby clothes were among those who listened to our Lord. So too were vintners who certainly knew what happens when the new wine is put into old wineskins. Jesus reminds them all that they have to receive His message with a new spirit, one that breaks with conformity and the routines of jaded souls; Jesus proposes something entirely different, not another version of the Law, but a new life altogether.
Thoughts on Today's Gospel
“A different exercise of devotion is required of each. Such practice must be modified according to the strength, the calling, and the duties of each individual.” (Saint Francis de Sales)
“The word of God is living and is free. The Gospel is newness. Revelation is newness. Jesus is very clear: new wine in fresh wine skins. God must be received with openness to what is new. And this disposition is called docility.” (Francis)
“Outward sacrifice, to be genuine, must be the expression of spiritual sacrifice (…). The prophets of the Old Covenant often denounced sacrifices that were not from the heart or not coupled with love of neighbor. Jesus recalls the words of the prophet Hosea: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’ (Mt 9:13).” Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Nº 2100)
