An old woman as bent-over, She is bent-over double, crippled and unable to stand up straight or look people in the eye.

Yet Jesus sees her and decides to free her from her affliction. On the day she least expects, God visits her and heals her.

No Sabbath could stop the goodness of God pouring on His people. 

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Romans 8:12-17

30TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 

Then, brothers,

Let us leave the flesh and no longer live according to it. If not, we will die. Rather, walking in the Spirit, let us put to death the body's deeds so that we may live.

 

All those who walk in the Spirit of God are sons and daughters of God. Then, no more fear: you did not receive a spirit of slavery, but the Spirit that makes you sons and daughters and every time we cry, "Abba! (this is Dad!) Father!" the Spirit assures our spirit that we are sons and daughters of God. If we are children, we are heirs, too. Ours will be the inheritance of God and we will share it with Christ; for if we now suffer with him, we will also share glory with him.

 

Ps 68:2 & 4, 6-7ab, 20-21 Our God is the God of salvation.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊     

Luke 13:10-17

Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath, and a crippled woman was there. An evil spirit had kept her bent for eighteen years, so that she could not straighten up at all. On seeing her, Jesus called her and said, "Woman, you are freed from your infirmity." Then he laid his hands upon her and immediately she was made straight and praised God.

 

But the ruler of the synagogue was indignant because Jesus had performed this healing on the Sabbath day and he said to the people, "There are six days in which to work; come on those days to be healed and not on the Sabbath." But the Lord replied, "You hypocrites! Everyone of you unties his ox or his donkey on the Sabbath and leads it out of the barn to give it water.

 

And here you have a daughter of Abraham whom Satan had bound for eighteen years. Should she not be freed from her bonds on the Sabbath?" When Jesus said this, all his opponents felt ashamed. But the people rejoiced at the many wonders that happened because of him.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"We should be ashamed and strive to do better." 

Only Luke tells this story about a woman who had been disabled for eighteen years. Can you imagine not being able to stand up straight for eighteen years? Scripture doesn't tell us how old she was when she came to Jesus, so it's possible that she'd been suffering from this infirmity for much of her life. Finally able to find healing in Jesus, she is immediately surrounded by anger because Jesus healed her on the Sabbath.

 

 

Too often the same thing happens in our world. Those in need are caught in the middle as others argue about their situations. The woman in this story has no voice. All we know is that she praised God for her cure. We don't know why she came to be cured on the Sabbath, but after having been bent over for eighteen years, she probably didn't want to waste another moment when healing was in sight.

 

Too often, we judge people's motivations and criticize their actions without asking why or letting them speak for themselves. Like Jesus' opponents, we should be ashamed and strive to do better.