Remember to Keep Holy the Lord’s Day
The morning sunlight painted the stained glass of St. Mary’s, but only two of the usual three figures knelt in the pews. Joan, her hands quietly clasped, closed her eyes as the priest’s voice rose in the opening prayer. Beside her, the space where Bobby usually slouched was empty. Carol, on the other hand, sat ramrod straight, her lips barely moving in time with the familiar responses. Her eyes, however, flickered occasionally towards the thick stack of papers nestled in her lap.
Bobby, meanwhile, rolled over in bed, the muffled church bells only a faint annoyance. “God knows I’m a good person,” he mumbled, pulling the covers tighter. “Following those stuffy rules ain’t the point. It’s what’s in your heart that counts.” Somewhere at the back of his mind, a small voice whispered about missed promises to his mom, but he easily swatted it away.
As the consecration bell chimed, Carol shifted, her eyes scanning a spreadsheet projected in her mind. Sure, she was at Mass, but the week had been a whirlwind. Just a quick catch-up, then she’d go for a nice lunch, maybe a bit of tidying later. She felt a twinge of guilt at the thought of the neglected laundry pile, but reassured herself – there was always time for prayer later.
Joan, by contrast, savored the scent of incense, the weight of the rosary beads she twirled between prayers. The music wasn’t just notes, but a song of praise lifted straight to heaven. Later, she’d curl up with a worn old Bible, visit her elderly neighbor, or maybe just stroll in the park, the quiet a balm to her busy week. Sure, she wasn’t perfect, but these Sundays always felt like a homecoming.
The weeks turned into months. Bobby found that “what’s in your heart” was easily swayed when temptation knocked. Without Mass, the voice of conscience was fainter, old justifications louder. An extra hour of sleep felt better than confronting his shortcomings; a few drinks to unwind blurred the lines he’d once drawn. The ache of something missing remained, but he buried it deeper each time.
For Carol, Sundays became a checklist: Mass – tick. Catch-up on work – tick. Housework – tick. Prayer? Well, perhaps a rushed Hail Mary before bed, if she wasn’t too exhausted. Yet, the sense of peace never came. Sundays were preparation days, not sacred ones. Her faith was compartmentalized, a duty ticked off rather than a wellspring at the heart of her life.
Joan, however, found a rhythm. Her Sundays weren’t about doing nothing, but doing differently. The prayers woven throughout Mass resonated in the quiet conversations she shared that evening, the Scripture verses echoing when a coworker needed encouragement. Her Sunday rest wasn’t idleness, but a recharging -– energy given back to her tenfold for the week ahead.
It isn’t that God demanded perfection from any of them. It was that He offered a gift. For Bobby, the gift was unopened, tossed aside, and a connection to something greater slowly atrophied. Carol unwrapped the gift but used it as a tool, a means to an end, losing sight of the Giver. Only Joan fully received it, letting Sunday transform the rest of her week, discovering intimacy with God not just in the pews, but in the heart of her everyday life.
Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the