Gospel: Luke 6:6-11
On another Sabbath, Jesus entered the synagogue and began teaching. There was a man with a paralyzed right hand, and the teachers of the law and the Pharisees watched him: Would Jesus heal the man on the Sabbath? If he did, they could accuse him.
But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to the man, “Get up, and stand in the middle.” Then he spoke to them, “I want to ask you: what is allowed by the law on the Sabbath? To do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” And Jesus looked around at them all.
Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored, becoming as healthy as the other. But they were furious, and began to discuss with one another how they could deal with Jesus.

Reflections
“To save life or destroy it.”
“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn 10:10). This, according to Jesuit New Testament scholar Brendan Byrne, is the heart of Jesus mission. It is a life that is lived to the full; a life of peace, justice and love; a life filled with compassion and mercy, with tenderness and caring. It is a new way of living where humans do not live in want, but abundance.
A parishioner in our Sydney parish is in the third month of pregnancy when she was ad- vised by her obstetrician to terminate her pregnancy. She was told that the pregnancy is risky because of her age (She is in her late forties.) and that there is big chance the baby will be borne with defects. In a conversation with her, she recounted that after much prayer she and her husband decided to keep the baby, and that she continued to pray for the baby the rest of the pregnancy. Several months went past. On one Sunday evening, after the mass, I saw her with the baby on the pram. She told me they are so grateful that they decided to keep their baby. The last time I saw her and her family was few weeks before their flight back to England.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019