GOD LOVE YOU AND THE WE

 1. Saturday is a very important day for Israel; It is the day of the Old Covenant, the day of rest (cf. Ex 34:21), the day of the Lord. Every Jew, therefore, must live this day focused on family and God. Such importance allowed, little by little, the enslavement of the Jews to the Sabbath, a form of blind and inhuman dependence. The seventh day of the week has become a very heavy burden due to so many superficial laws inserted into it.

2. Jesus relativizes the legalistic interpretation of the Sabbath. The Pharisaic reaction to the disciples' attitude in picking up the ears of wheat reveals a very great weakness in understanding the DAY OF THE LORD. When making a comparison with what David did, when he was coming from persecution caused by Saul, when he ate the sacred bread, due only to the priests (Lev 24,5-9). The teaching is evident that in the face of extreme need, the law is suspended, in this case, the prescriptions of the Sabbath. Life is more important than any law, because the law exists in favor of life, which is a gift from God. In turn, the disciples, acting the way they did, give the impression that they were at ease with Jesus, they had a form of security capable of allowing them to be bold on the Sabbath day; they were beginning to glimpse a tremendous change in the way of understanding the Law of God, placing them in the condition of free men.

3. Saturday must be the day on which man lives his condition of image and likeness with God, through the exercise of his autonomy turned towards the Lord; It is also the day to remember the liberation of God's people (Ex 20,11; Dt 5,15). This original meaning is being established by Jesus, who reveals himself as the Lord of the Sabbath. The key to understanding the Law of God is Jesus Christ, the only Word of the Father, all of the Father's teaching for humanity. He is the transforming Word, the saving Message, the liberating Newness, perceived more clearly after his death and resurrection.

4. Resurrection Sunday, the day of the New and Eternal Covenant, is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Saturday; It is the day of glorification of Jesus, of the new creation, of the New Covenant, of victory over death, sin and Satan; It is the day of faith of the Church, the new people of God. The Sabbath of the Old Testament fulfilled its mission as a preparatory promise for Sunday, the Lord's day. Sunday is the day of true appreciation of human dignity, of its autonomy and liberation, the day of the Christian family and its communion with God, the day of charity and solidarity par excellence, the whole day for God and for the good of humanity. I hope God that the rest due to the Lord's Day is truly alive with intense joy, charm and availability on the Sunday of the Resurrected One, the Son of Man, the Lord of the Sabbath, the resurrected Victor, our Law par excellence.

5. The other controversy involving Jesus and the Pharisees concerns the man with the dry hand, a chronic case, at the center of the problem, continuing the discussion about the Sabbath. The Pharisees want to test Jesus on his orthodox knowledge of the Sabbath. Jesus, in turn, will lead each adversary to a deep reflection that will not allow a middle ground in the answer: do good or do evil. Two extremes, no neutrality. When you look at that man's situation, you either do good or leave him in the same problem, which would be bad, as there is the possibility of his release. Jesus insists on good, on the desire for liberation and acts, even though he is in the synagogue, on a Saturday, against the opinion of the Pharisees, in favor of that man in need.

6. Jesus feels "anger and sorrow" at the Pharisees' closure, their terrible blindness, their hardened heart. Jesus' look of kindness is a devouring fire in the minds of those who act for themselves, it is disillusionment for those who no longer see the good, it is terror in the soul of those who live in the shadow of power and in the desire to possess it. Jesus sees man from the inside, knows his weaknesses and disappointments, knows his intimacy, understands when he makes mistakes and knows when he humbly wants to rise up. Jesus knows more than any wise man on earth the deepest needs of human beings, as He is, above all, the creative and saving Word. Understands the other, Jesus acts to free him, forgiving him, healing him from his miseries, teaching him the way of salvation. This even applies to the hypocritical Pharisees, who are also called to rethink their conceptions and change their lives. They are also given the possibility of seeing the truth more accurately.

7. The fact is that Jesus forgives, heals, relativizes Saturday, combats the anti-human way of political and religious action in Israel, reveals the hypocrisy of religious leaders and presents himself as the only condition of salvation for humanity, identifying himself with God. All of this makes HIM the greatest danger for those who use power for themselves (whether political or religious). That's why they want to kill him. Darkness cannot stand the Light, because those who live in the shadows, hidden, want to remain.