Friday – 15th Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel – Matthew 12:1-8

Apples and Grain

Father Judge Mission Seminary

Back when I was in the seminary (Father Judge) in Monroe, Virginia, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, we would spend a lot of our free time just wandering along all the country roads in the area.  I especially loved the hikes in the autumn when the apple orchards were ready for harvest.  We would always carry along a bag or two and grab as many apples as we could manage.  Was that “kosher”?  Not really!  Did we know we were stealing?  Sure!  And there were plenty of times when we ‘almost’ got caught. 

The Apostles (looking for a snack, I guess), in today’s Gospel, are caught picking grain on the Sabbath.  The law is clear: no work on the Sabbath and picking grain qualifies as work.  Jesus reminds the Pharisees that there have been exceptions to the rule in the past, particularly King David.  And He tries to teach them that God is not just a Law-giver but a loving parent.

We all know that to be true!  We all grew up with rules from our parents and discipline when we faltered.  For those of us who are parents, there were certainly times when our child broke a rule and yet they were so heartbroken and devastated by it that any punishment from us would have been counter-productive.  How could we discipline them any more than they were already punishing themselves?  So, what did we do?  We forgave them, we loved them. 

God reminds us today that He is Our Father!  He is a loving, forgiving Parent.  Yes, of course there are rules to follow.  But through it all, God is merciful and loving and compassionate!