Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
(II Samuel 6:12b-15.17-19; Mark 3:31-35)
Does the world need God? As probably half of the world’s
population, we say that we do. But increasingly, especially in western
societies, people act as if they do not need God. Witness the lagging
observance of Sunday as the Lord’s Day and the greater interest in retirement
plans than in pursuit of eternal life. Today’s first reading suggests
that indeed a right functioning requires the worship of God.
When King David dances before the Ark of the Covenant, he is
showing himself as the epitome of a renewed priesthood and well as of the
kingship. He has just offered sacrifice to God. Now he gives God exultant
praise before the Ark which contains the Tablets of the Law. His actions
imply that the people must recognize God as author, sustainer, and legislator
of their life. Without God their strength will shrivel, and they will
come to nothing.
If we look at what is happening around us, we should reach the
same conclusion. Not remembering Christ’s command to love one another, we
are falling into the division of identity politics which often ignore the
common good. More devastating, not heeding God’s law concerning sex, many
rob their children of full family life. We also need God even more for
His daily assistance that comes in more numerable ways than is possible to
record.
