Reflection for January 19 Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time: Mark 2:18-22

Gospel Mark 2:18-22

The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were accustomed to fast. People came to Jesus and objected, “Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?

Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.  But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them and then they will fast on that day.

No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak. If he does, its fullness pulls away, the new from the old, and the tear gets worse. Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”

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Reflection:

What is a wineskin? A wineskin is a dried goat’s or sheep’s skin used as a container for wine—perhaps the equivalent of a wine bottle or wine barrel today. But beyond this simple definition, Jesus invites us to look deeper. The new wineskin is not merely a container; it represents Christ Himself, who longs to receive us and give us new life.

Because of our sinfulness, we often become like old wine—hardened by habits, weakened by compromises, and no longer ready to receive the fullness of God’s grace. Yet if we truly desire to be poured into the new wineskin, we must choose to leave behind our old, sinful way of life. When we do, we ourselves become new wine—renewed, restored, and made ready for the life God wants to give us.

And the moment we are poured into this new wineskin, we find our true security. In other words, the new wineskin—who is Jesus Himself—becomes our refuge, our strength, and our hope. He is always offering Himself to us so that we may have a new life, not only in the world to come, but even here and now. All He asks of us is to trust Him enough to let go of our sinfulness.

Has sin ever truly done us any good? It has only wounded us, emptied us, and led us farther from the joy we seek. It has never given us the peace our hearts long for—and it never will. Therefore, we must leave it behind and choose to walk through this world hand in hand with our new wineskin, our true security, who is none other than Jesus.

The question is this: Are we willing to let go of what keeps us old, cracked, and empty, so that Christ can make us new and fill us with His life once again? — Marino J. Dasmarinas