Rest A While

Tomorrow's Gospel, taken from Mark 6:30-34:


"The apostles gathered together with Jesusand reported all they had done and taught.
He said to them,
"Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."
People were coming and going in great numbers,
and they had no opportunity even to eat.
So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.
People saw them leaving and many came to know about it.
They hastened there on foot from all the towns
and arrived at the place before them.

When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things."

Rest a while...

In our modern world, the Third Commandment of God cannot be emphasized strongly enough. It is interesting that there is no commandment urging us to work! But there is a special commandment which addresses the issue of protecting our human dignity and sanity by protecting the Lord's Day with a special conditions. No work on Sundays! 

There are three conditions or requirements which together constitute the complete observation of the Lord's Day and thus - of the Third Commandment. 

First, celebrate the Paschal Mystery in your community of the faithful, together in a liturgical celebration in the church (this is stressed also in the first church commandment).

Secondly, rest your whole person on Sunday. Your spirit, your mind and your body. Anything that is violating this requirement is nothing but sin.

Thirdly, do not commit sin on Sunday. Well, we are not supposed to commit sins on any given day. But if we commit sin on Sunday, its weight is double. It is not only a sin itself, but by committing a sin on a holy day, we violate its sanctity, thus violating the Third Commandment which requires us to observe it in a holy manner.

We must protect Sundays with all costs in our own lives and helping others to understand its importance and its impact on our entire lives.

Moreover, we must understand the concern of Jesus, who ordered His disciples to detach themselves from the daily works and challenges and rest a while. Rest a while. Not to turn life in leisure and sweet doing nothing. Resting enough to be able to live fully and work precisely and fruitfully. Happy with our work and lives and not like workaholic zombies, totally trashed by the workload, allowing their work to turn their lives into nightmare, destroying along the way relationships, happiness, proper balance of matters and not knowing how to rest properly and recharge inner batteries.