Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

"Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry, how he went into the house of God and ate the bread of offering, which neither he nor his companions but only the priests could lawfully eat? Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests serving in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent? I say to you, something greater than the temple is here. If you knew what this meant, I desire mercy, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned these innocent men. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

We are all called to do God’s Will, no matter the time or place. Sometimes we can convince ourselves that we shouldn’t do the right thing because we’re too busy practicing our religious routines. However, we should not let ourselves be blinded to the needs of others by our personal spirituality. Sometimes we may need to stop in the middle of a prayer to give someone else a hand. We might even need to miss Mass in order to take care of someone in need. God knows that if we could have finished the prayer or gone to Mass we would have done so. He sees the inner actions of our hearts and He will not punish us for being Christ-like and knowing, loving, and serving our neighbors in their times of need. We should never allow an opportunity to show mercy to pass by because of a sense of religious obligation.

Have we let chances to do God’s Will pass us by out of a false sense of religiousness? What can we do to open our hearts to those moments when we can offer God acts of love and mercy outside our normal religious routines? How can we prepare ourselves for those moments when we might be called to be not just religious, but merciful servants as well?

O Lord, make us into fonts of your mercy.

Amen.