Daily Readings - Wed Jun 07 2017
Mark
18And Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying,19"Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.20There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring.21And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise.22And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died.23In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife."24Jesus said to them, "Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?25For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.26And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?27He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong."
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the themes of faith, suffering, and the ultimate hope of eternal life. In the first reading from Tobit, we encounter two souls, Tobit and Sarah, who are deeply afflicted. Tobit, blind and humiliated, cries out to God, acknowledging His justice and mercy, while Sarah, having lost seven husbands, prays for deliverance from her reproach. Both turn to God in their despair, trusting in His providence and goodness. Their prayers are not complaints but acts of faith, expressing their belief that God can transform their suffering into something redemptive.
In the Gospel, Jesus confronts the Sadducees, who question the reality of the resurrection. Using a hypothetical scenario about a woman married to seven brothers, they seek to mock the idea of an afterlife. Jesus, however, reveals their error by explaining that the resurrected life is beyond earthly marriage and human categories. He reminds them that God is the God of the living, not the dead, and that life with Him transcends death. This exchange underscores the Sadducees' spiritual blindness and their failure to grasp the power and mystery of God.
These readings are connected by the theme of trusting in God’s plan, even when it seems unclear or when suffering weighs heavily upon us. Tobit and Sarah teach us to pray with sincerity and perseverance, while Jesus calls us to look beyond the limitations of this world and to hope in the eternal life He promises. In our daily lives, we are invited to embrace this same faith. When we face trials or doubts, let us turn to God with trust, knowing that He is ever-merciful and that His ways are always just. May we, like Tobit and Sarah, find strength in prayer, and may we, like Jesus, keep our eyes fixed on the eternal life that awaits us.