You can't No one puts a piece of unshrunken cloth on to an old cloak

The interplay between Esau and Jacob, brought out the reversal of fortune in life. Esau as the elder child was destined to be the recipient of his father’s inheritance, but fate and God’s will eventually showed that it was Jacob, the father of the Israelites, who was to receive the fullness of God’s promised inheritance. Tradition holds it that Esau married the local Canaanite women, despite the disapproval from his parents. That accounts for the reason Rebecca, their mother, sought to have Jacob succeed his father Isaac. Jacob was however uncertain of the prospect and was afraid that his father would discover the ruse. However, he was supported by his mother. By God’s providence, Jacob succeeded in getting what his brother Esau had carelessly abandoned. Esau easily traded his birthright over a pot of food that Jacob cooked and then, he managed to gain the blessing which Isaac reserved for his firstborn and heir.

The incompatibility in Esau and Jacob led to friction and division among them, such that Jacob was forced to flee to a faraway land, where his forefathers came from in order to escape the wrath of Esau. In today's Gospel, the Lord shows us the incompatibility between righteous and sinful life in the image of new and old cloth and new wine and old wineskin. This means that we cannot continue to live in sinful ways and at the same time profess to believe in God. We must be ready for change, in order to follow Jesus and take Him as our guide. To follow Jesus faithfully, there must be a drastic discontinuity with our past. We cannot be sinful and be righteous at the same time, as the two of them are just as polar opposites as Esau and Jacob had been different from each other.

May the Lord give us courage when things go wrong and strengthen us with faith, hope in His promises and love of His will! Amen!! Good morning and Happy Weekend!!!