Lk 13:10-17
10[Jesus] was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath. 11And a woman was there who for eighteen years had been crippled by a spirit; she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect. 12When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, “Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.” 13He laid his hands on her, and she at once stood up straight and glorified God.
14But the leader of the synagogue, indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath, said to the crowd in reply, “There are six days when work should be done. Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day.” 15The Lord said to him in reply, “Hypocrites! Does not each one of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger and lead it out for watering? 16This daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now, ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day from this bondage?” 17When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated; and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him.
Reflection:
All his adversaries were humiliated; and the whole crowd rejoiced. The crowd finally finds a champion for them, an ally for their cause. Here is one who has freed them, not from their conquerors but from the clutches of legalities and formalities. Here is one who has lifted up their dignity and raised their worth as persons.
We recognize a good deed when we see one, the right intentions that inspire us, and a good heart that speaks to us. These are what we should imitate as they gladden us. They are fruits not of entertainment stars or politicians who simply mouth slogans but of real persons who live their faith in God and in their fellow men and women.
List real life idols for yourself and your kids.