Transcend to Isaiah 58 living

The message of the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today urges us to consider the deep implications and opportunities to draw closer to God through actions which place service of the poor, oppressed, disadvantaged and outcast as action in our daily life. Our practice of fasting is a discipline of cleansing. Barbara Dilly of Creighton University declares that the words from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah today really kick our butts. The situation which surrounded the people of Jerusalem when they returned from exile in Babylon is, according to Friar Jude Winkler, the background for the text today which was written at that time. The promise of a restored Jerusalem seems distant to the returnees. They are drawn to ritual fasting as a way to seek the support of God. This discipline of clearing out the distractions which come from our over consumption and over concern with our own comfort is a personally healthy exercise. We can give some food and clothing away from our excess as we are moved toward the social justice described in Isaiah. The transcendent call of Jesus, who is presented as the Bridegroom in the passage from the Gospel of Matthew today, is to action of mercy, compassion, inclusion and generosity which becomes our live style. Self denial through ritual fasting is very appropriate for times of mourning in life, as Friar Jude comments. Our awareness of others and other movements which are not centered on us is the first step to the life change which brings our action toward the people we encounter closer to the model set by Jesus, our transcendent power to carry out the fast which brings the justice described in the Book of Isaiah.