Sunday Meditation: The Law Within You

We now return to the Gospel of Mark, and Jesus comes to another confrontation with the Pharisees and Scribes.  This time the confrontation is over form rather than substance.

 

When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals with unclean, that is, unwashed, hands.

—For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews,

do not eat without carefully washing their hands,

keeping the tradition of the elders.

And on coming from the marketplace

they do not eat without purifying themselves.

And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed, the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.—

So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,

"Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders

but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?"

He responded,

"Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written:

This people honors me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching as doctrines human precepts.

You disregard God's commandment but cling to human tradition."

 

He summoned the crowd again and said to them,

"Hear me, all of you, and understand.

Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;

but the things that come out from within are what defile.

 

"From within people, from their hearts,

come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,

adultery, greed, malice, deceit,

licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.

All these evils come from within and they defile."

~Mk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

I was going to search out the best homily other than from Bishop Barron.  But, Bishop Barron gave a most brilliant homily, one that is in accord with some of my personal suppositions.  So it had to be Bishop Barron again. 

I’s not that the law or traditions are not important.  It’s a question of prioritization.  You don’t get grace from a mere ritualistic act.  You get grace by the law implanted in you.  Could the view of the Pharisees be summarized as form being more important than the substance?  I’m not a theologian, but I would venture to say that is so.

Which takes me to all those who insist on a particular form of worship and claim their form is more efficacious than everyone else’s.  I think Bishop Barron is alluding to these people.  I’m not saying their form of worship is any less efficacious.  But I dispute that it’s any more.  Personally I think Jesus agrees with me.

 

Sunday Meditation: “You disregard God's commandment but cling to human tradition.”

 

Let’s return to a John Michael Talbot song, “Create In Me A Clean Heart.” 

 

I think that is about as appropriate to today’s meditation as I could find.