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Reading from the book of Exodus. In
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those days, Moses and Aaron performed
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many wonders before Pharaoh. But the
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Lord hardened Pharaohs heart, and
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he would not let the Israelites leave
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his land. The Lord said to Moses and
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Aaron in Egypt, "This month will be the
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beginning of months for you. It will be
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the first month of the year. speak to
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the whole community of the Israelites,
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saying, "On the 10th day of this month,
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each person is to take a lamb for each
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family, one lamb for each house. If the
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family is not large enough to eat a
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lamb, they are to invite their nearest
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neighbor as well, according to the
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number of people. You are to calculate
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the number of those who will dine with
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you according to the size of the lamb.
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The lamb must be an unblenmished male, a
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year old. You may choose either a lamb
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or a young goat and keep it tied up
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until the 14th day of this month. Then
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the whole community of Israel gathered
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together will slaughter it at twilight.
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You are to take some of its blood and
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smear it on the doorposts and lentil of
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the houses where you eat it. You are to
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eat the meat that same night roasted
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over fire with unleavened bread and
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bitter herbs. You are to eat none of it
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raw or boiled in water. water, but
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roasted over the fire, whole with head,
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legs, and entrils. You shall not leave
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any of it until the next day. What is
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left over you shall burn in the fire.
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This is how you shall eat it with your
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loins girded, sandals on your feet, and
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your staff in your hand. And you shall
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eat it in haste. For it is the Passover,
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that is the Lord's passage. And I will
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pass through the land of Egypt that
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night and strike down every firstborn in
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the land of Egypt, both man and beast.
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And I will inflict punishments on all
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the gods of Egypt, I the Lord. The blood
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shall be a sign on the houses where you
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are. When I see the blood, I will pass
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over you, and the destructive plague
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will not touch you when I strike the
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land of Egypt. This day shall be for you
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a memorable feast to the Lord, which you
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shall celebrate throughout your
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Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
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Christ according to St. Matthew. Glory
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to you, Lord. On the Sabbath, Jesus was
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passing through the grain fields. His
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disciples were hungry and began to pick
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some heads of grain to eat. When the
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Pharisees saw this, they said to him,
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"Look, your disciples are doing what is
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unlawful on the Sabbath."
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Jesus answered them, "Have you never
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read what David did when he and his
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companions were hungry? How he entered
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the house of God, and they all ate the
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bread of sacrifice, which neither he nor
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his companions were allowed to eat, but
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only the priests? Or have you never read
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in the law that on the Sabbath day in
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the temple the priests profane the
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Sabbath and are innocent? But I tell you
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something greater than the temple is
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here. If you had understood what this
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means, I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
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you would not have condemned the
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innocent. Indeed, the Son of Man is Lord
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of the Sabbath. Word of salvation. Glory
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Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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imagine yourselves in a besieged city
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where the people live in constant
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tension, waiting for a liberation that
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seems never to come. Suddenly, in the
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darkest night, a door opens. No ordinary
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door, but a passage to freedom. This
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powerful image introduces us to the
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heart of our first reading today. The
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institution of Passover, a moment that
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would forever change the history of
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God's people. This night shall be a
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night of vigil in honor of the Lord,
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proclaims Moses. What words filled with
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expectation and hope. This is no
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ordinary night, but a defining moment in
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salvation history. The Hebrew people
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enslaved in Egypt for generations are
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about to experience the liberation God
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had promised. But notice the specific
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details God gives through Moses. You
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shall take a lamb, a male, one year old,
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Not just any lamb, but a perfect
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spotless lamb. This lamb would be
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sacrificed, and its blood would be used
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to mark the doors of Israelite homes.
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When I see the blood, I will pass over
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you. The Lord promises. My brothers and
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sisters, this is not just an ancient
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story. It is a prefiguration, a shadow
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of the deeper reality we find in Jesus
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Christ. Paul tells us clearly, "Christ,
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our Passover has been sacrificed."
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Jesus is the perfect spotless lamb whose
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blood not only marks our doors but
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purifies our hearts. But Passover was
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not just about liberation. It was about
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remembrance. This day shall be a
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memorial for you, says Moses. You shall
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celebrate this feast to the Lord. It
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shall be a perpetual ordinance
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throughout your generations.
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God knew that the people would need
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constant reminders of his faithfulness,
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of his liberating power. This is where
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our gospel reading becomes profoundly
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relevant. Jesus and his disciples are
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walking through the grain fields on a
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Sabbath, and the disciples, hungry,
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begin to pick heads of grain to eat. The
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Pharisees, vigilant guardians of the
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law, immediately accuse, "Look, your
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disciples are doing what is unlawful on
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the Sabbath." To fully understand this
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scene, we need to put it in context. The
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Sabbath was sacred to the Jews, a
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God-given institution meant to be a
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blessing, a respit from the daily grind.
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But over the centuries, religious
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leaders had built layers and layers of
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rules and regulations around the
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Sabbath, transforming it from a source
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of joy into a heavy burden. Jesus, the
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master of the word, responds with a
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lesson from biblical history. Have you
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not read what David did when he and his
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companions were hungry? How he entered
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the house of God and ate the showbread
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which was not lawful for him or his
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companions to eat, but only for the
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priests. What a brilliant response.
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Jesus is reminding the Pharisees that
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even David, the man after God's own
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heart, when faced with genuine human
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need, prioritize compassion over the
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cold letter of the law. It wasn't that
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David despised God's law, but that he
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understood the heart behind the law. And
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then Jesus makes a statement that must
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have left the Pharisees speechless. I
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tell you, something greater than the
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temple is here. Imagine the shock. For a
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Jew, nothing was more sacred than the
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temple. It was the place of God's
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presence, the center of religious life.
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And Jesus is saying that there in
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himself, is something greater. But Jesus
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doesn't stop there. He quotes the
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prophet Hosea, if you had known this, I
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desire mercy, not sacrifice, you would
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not have condemned the innocent. What
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penetrating words. Jesus is confronting
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a religiosity that has lost itself in
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rituals and rules, forgetting the
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fundamental purpose of faith, love, and
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mercy. Think with me. How many times
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have we also fallen into this trap? How
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many times have we become so focused on
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the external forms of religion that we
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forget its heart? How often do we judge
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others for not following our traditions
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exactly while neglecting the love and
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compassion that should be the hallmarks
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of our faith? And then Jesus makes the
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final declaration which is like a bolt
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from the blue. For the son of man is
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Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus is not merely
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interpreting the law of the Sabbath. He
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is revealing his divine authority. He is
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Lord of the Sabbath because he is Lord
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of all. My dear brothers and sisters,
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these readings invite us to a deep
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reflection on the nature of true worship
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and obedience to God. Easter reminds us
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that God is a God of liberation. a God
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who frees us not only from physical
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slavery but also from the spiritual
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chains that bind us. And the Sabbath
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episode teaches us that this liberation
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includes freedom from a lifeless
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legalistic religiosity. When Jesus says,
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"I desire mercy, not sacrifice." He is
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not dismissing the importance of worship
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or obedience. He is showing us that true
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worship flows from a heart transformed
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by God's mercy. It is a heart that
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understands that it has been freed,
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forgiven, and loved unconditionally.
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Imagine what our lives would be like if
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we truly understood this. If we woke
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each morning not with the burden of
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trying to please God through our own
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works, but with the joy of knowing that
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we are already accepted and loved by
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him. If we saw every opportunity to
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serve not as an obligation, but as a
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natural response to the love we receive.
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And imagine what our community would be
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like if we truly lived by mercy rather
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than judgment. If instead of pointing
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fingers at those who are different from
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us, we extended a hand in compassion. If
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instead of creating barriers and
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exclusions, we built bridges of love and
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inclusion. Jesus shows us that he is
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greater than the temple, greater than
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our traditions, greater than our human
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rules. But he does not destroy these
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things. He fulfills them in their true
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purpose. The temple was meant to be a
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place of encounter with God. And Jesus
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is Emmanuel, God with us. The Sabbath
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was meant to be a restorative rest. And
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Jesus offers us true rest for our souls.
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Today we are invited to a new Passover,
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a new liberation. Not just from physical
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slavery, but from spiritual slavery. Not
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just from the chains of Egypt, but from
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the chains of legalism, judgment, and
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religious hypocrisy. We are called to
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live in the freedom that Christ won for
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us. But remember, this freedom is not a
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license to do whatever we want. It is
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the freedom to love as God loves, to
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serve as Jesus served, to live in mercy
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and compassion. It is the freedom to be
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who God created us to be. And just as
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Passover was meant to be celebrated
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perpetually, our lives should be a
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constant memorial of God's grace. Each
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day should be a celebration of our
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liberation. Each action a testimony to
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his mercy. Each encounter an opportunity
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to show the love of Christ. May we, like
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those people freed from Egypt, live in
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constant remembrance of God's
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faithfulness. May we, like Jesus'
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disciples, walk with him in freedom,
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knowing that he is Lord not only of the
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Sabbath, but of all our days. And may
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our lives be a living declaration that
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we serve a God of mercy, a God who
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liberates us, a God who loves us beyond
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measure. May the grace of our Lord Jesus
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Christ, the love of God the Father, and
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the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be
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St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
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battle. Be our protection against the
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wickedness and snares of the devil. May
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God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
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thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by
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the power of God, cast into hell Satan
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and all the evil spirits who prowl
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throughout the world seeking the ruin of
