Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B

“The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.” - Psalms 19

If you know me, or you have read these reflections long enough, you will know that I usually do not like rules. There is a natural tendency to question and rebel toward rules and authority, especially if I feel the rules are not justified or do not make sense. 

However, I love the rules in games. Particularly, I like the rule in Uno when you have to announce that you have one card left, but if you forget and someone does it before you then you have to draw more cards. I like rules that benefit me as a player in the game so I can win.

We like rules when we benefit from them. We do not like rules when they seem to make things more difficult or involve us having to sacrifice something. We need to remember that some human rules and laws may be arbitrary or unjust, but God’s law is designed to set us free. God knows what will give us the absolute best life, and his laws and commandments reflect the type of life that will lead to our flourishing. 

If you want to play a sport well, you need to operate within the rules. The rules are not there to limit the fun you can have, they are there to keep you safe and help you understand the purpose of the game so you can do well. Life is the same, God’s laws are designed to keep us safe and prevent us from going down a path of destruction and despair. God is for us and is always actively working for our good.

Yes, rules mean that we are saying “no” to certain things, but that enables us to say “yes” to the things that matter most and are best for us. Everything good in life involves sacrifice, and the need to say “no” to other things in order to prioritize them. Investing in an education and pursuing a career involves sacrificing our time, energy, and finances to work toward what we want to achieve. Friendships take an investment of our time to grow, which is time we are sacrificing that could be spent on other things. Marriage and having children require immense sacrifice, but they are two of the most important and beautiful things a person can do. Serving the poor requires we sacrifice our abundance and time to help those who go without.

Everything worth doing requires sacrifice, saying “no” to some things in order to say “yes” to what matters more.

The laws and precepts of the Lord give us joy when we recognize that they are not just about us saying “no” to certain things, they allow us to say “yes” to the abundance, grace-filled lives the Lord created us for.

There are five fundamental precepts of the Catholic Church listed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 2041-2043. These are the five bare minimum, non-negotiable requirements for all Catholics: 

1. You shall attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation and rest from servile labor.

2. You shall confess your sins at least once a year.

3. You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season.

4. You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church.

5. You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church

Why are these important? Because they focus and orient our lives toward the Lord. The precepts help us to prioritize worship, remove the obstacles of sin, receive God’s grace and presence in our lives, help us establish self-control, and remind us that we are a family that provides for one another. These allow us to keep God and the center of our lives and they help train us to resist sin and selfishness, because they lead to isolation and destruction. 

They are not arbitrary rules. 

They are the desires of a loving Father to protect His children and give them the best life possible.

Where is the area you most struggle to accept the teachings of the Church?

How might you grow in knowledge and understanding to see the beauty of the teachings you struggle with?

Do you trust that God is for you? If so, we should have no problem doing whatever He says. If not, then pray for deeper trust.

The Lord is good, and so is every word and every law that comes forth from His lips. They are all for our greatest possible good.

God never said, “take and understand.”

He said “take and eat.” 

So try to receive what He wants to give you this week without doubt or questioning.

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, September 29th, 2024, the Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B: Psalms 19:8, 10, 12-13, 14.