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Servais-Théodore Pinckaers, OP, a Dominican friar and moral theologian made an important distinction in the moral law. He contrasted the concept of license (we can do whatever we want) with purposeful choices that sometimes limit our license for a greater good. Parents who attend to their sick children in the middle of the night, even though the parents might prefer to remain sleeping, become an example of the second type of freedom — one that actually makes us more free. When we make the decision to follow Jesus throughout our lives, we may find ourselves being asked to limit our choices in some way, but we do so for the greater good of the eternal relationship with Jesus. In today’s first reading, the people hear the reading of the Law, which had the purpose of helping people to live a holy life. Yet, we can find even ourselves failing in sin. Our relationship with Jesus provides us with the means to be forgiven for sin, and because of God’s grace to strive ever more fully to embrace his way of life.
