On Compassion Beyond Rules

From "In the Spirit of Transparency" - September 3, 2004

In Luke 6:1-11, the scribes and Pharisees were enraged when Jesus twice “dispensed” with the Mosaic law of Sabbath rest. First, Jesus defended His apostles’ conduct of gathering grain during Sabbath. Second, Jesus Himself healed a man with a withered hand on another Sabbath! Did Jesus dispense with the Sabbath law in these two gospel instances? What can we learn from Jesus regarding rules in a Christian community?

Jesus did not dispense with the Sabbath Law. In fact, He declared that “I have come not to abolish but the fulfill (the Law)” (Matthew 5:17). How did Jesus fulfill the Law? By becoming poor although He was rich so that by His poverty, we might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). By laying down His life for us (John 15:13), so that we might have abundant life (John 10:10). By giving Himself for our sins in order to save us from the present evil age in accord with the Father’s will (Galatians 1:4). Jesus fulfilled the Law by loving us and giving Himself up for us (Galatians 2:20). When He died to atone for our sins, the Lord of the Sabbath (Luke 6:5) showed us that the highest law is the law of Love. This is why St. Paul in Romans proclaimed that “Love is the fulfillment of the Law.”

The gospel clearly shows that Jesus wanted His people to obey His Father’s commandment to keep the Sabbath holy (Exodus 20:8) through compassion- by doing good, not evil, and by saving life, not destroying it (Luke 6:9). From this, we can draw two conclusions. One, the community needs to have fundamental laws or rules if we are to have order in the body. Without these rules, there will be confusion, waste and chaos, and the community will fail and die. Two, such rules must aim primarily to deepen and mature the heart and spirit of the community and to foster the overall well being of its members. An undue focus on efficiency and the strict interpretation of the letter of the law will shackle if not kill the heart and spirit of the community.

Remember: our community is body and spirit like its members. The community’s rules must therefore care for both its body and spirit. While rules are needed for order, they are beneficial only if they serve the good of the members (1 Cor 10:23-24). By themselves, rules are not the source of good. Christ is. This truth should direct our focus solely on Christ, who is the end of every law (Romans 10:4) and the source of all life and good. A Christ-centered community, in following its rule of life, shall become a fruitful agent in fostering a balanced spirituality among its members.