The Gospel For Monday, the 23rd week in ordinary time is taken from Luke 6, 6:11. On a certain Sabbath, Jesus went into the synagogue and taught. And there was a man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure him on the Sabbath so they might discover accuse him. But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, come up, stand before us. And he rose and stood there.

Then Jesus said to them, I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life, rather than to destroy it? Looking around at them all, he then said to him, stretch out your hand. He did so, and his hand was restored. But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus. One of the great tensions in the ministry of Jesus with the Temple was his disregard for the law. But what he’s trying to say is, you have to understand that the law itself is not what you are bound to, but your intention is what he’s interested in.

Why do I do the things I do? Why do I not do certain things? And so you see in this that there’s a clear indication that when your intention is to do good for someone, to heal someone, and that may not fit with the regulations and rules of religion, you’re obligated to follow your intention. It’s a very, very important teaching about the role of law in the life of everyone who belongs to a religion. The key is intending to do the work of Go. Satan.

Satan. Sam the CLOSING PRAYER Father, give us discernment so we can know what we need to do in a situation. And let us rely solely upon your guidance, awakening in our heart a desire to heal, to do good, to bring life. And we ask this in Jesus name, Amen.