For daily readings, see http://www.usccb.org/nab/102907.shtml
The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Pope John Paul II wrote a beautiful letter Dies Domini about five years ago reminding us to keep holy the Sabbath. In writing this letter, the Pope reiterated the importance of Sunday as a retreat day, a day for prayer and for focusing on the protection of the eternal life given by our Lord through his resurrection from the dead. Jesus himself today tells us that the Sabbath is a gift for doing good, and what is important about Sunday is not simply the religious obligations attached to the Sabbath, as important as these are, but that we pay attention to healing what is broken in our souls. Thus, Sunday is not simply a day for hitting Mass and then trying to fit in the recreational activities that we couldn’t fit into the other days, it is a day to live to the fullest as people who are destined for the kingdom of heaven. Thus, Sunday should be a day when we can focus completely on our status as children of the spirit, as St. Paul says. As a priest, I need to remember specifically that Sunday is not just my most important workday, it is also my chance to celebrate with the people I serve that eternal life is not some distant reality, but is made present here as we become together the body of Christ through our weekly reception of the Eucharist.
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