There is so much in this passage from Mathew.
The first that strikes me is that somewhere somebody said that the sabbath is made for man, not the other way round. I am sure someone reading this will be able to say who and where.
When my wife was going through RCIA she was told that if you cannot attend mass on Sunday then make your own sabbath on another day when you can attend mass.
"The one greater than the temple" is the God of compassion and love who saves us. I think and hope He will judge us as individuals according to our own specific circumstances. By that I mean that mitigating factors for different persons might be very different. If I stole food I would commit a sin but if a hungry man or woman with no money and no welfare support stole food to stay alive or give to their children, they would not be committing a sin.
If I lived in Alberta I would be tempted to give food I had cooked at home to the poor. Let the law be recognised as an ass (donkey - for you north americans!). What is the legal penalty for breaking this law? A fine of how much? What would be the equivalent in jail time? Would a judge actually sentence me even if I refused to pay the fine? Civil disobedience is called for, to protest this law. Easy for me to say since I live in BC!
In Matthew 12:9 Jesus was asked if it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath. He answered that it was lawful to do good on the sabbath. I think it should be lawful to do good at any time. Common sense really!
