09th February, Tuesday
I. Gen 1: 20 – 2:4 II. Mk 7: 1-13
Theme: Called to be images and likenesses of God.
As I reflect on today’s readings, I see a certain order is being emphasized. God obviously is at the top of this order. God created everything. Nothing has come to be without God’s willing it. On earth the next position is given to humans. They have the privilege of having control over the lesser parts of God’s creation. Yet with the privilege comes a need to care for the rest of creation. Men and women are made to be caretakers of creation. They are always to do as God would have them do not just what they want to do. When mortals start thinking that they are as important as God and can dictate rules and regulations as if they were God it is then things start to fall apart. Jesus rebukes the religious leaders who have taken on too much of authority and caused problems for other people because of their lording it over others. I would say with the Psalmist in Psalm no. 8 who contemplates God’s majesty and at the same time realizes how God has blessed humankind with a unique connection with the Lord God. The feeling of being challenged comes from the concept of stewardship or caretaker that God has given to human beings. The world is not ours to misuse it. Conservation, recycling, care of earth are not just important human qualities to possess. They are God-given responsibility shared with us as the very good part of the creation God has created. We are called to be images and likenesses of GOD. We must use our intellectual ability, emotional concerns, and our physical strength to prove that the world in which we have been privileged to live is God’s creation and not ours.
Bro Martin SMM
II BTh