GOD’S COMPLAINT

TWENTY SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (B)

Mark 7, 1-8.14-15.21-23

The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were “unclean, that is, unwashed. (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles. )

So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’ hands?” He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: “ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.”

Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him ‘unclean’ by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him ‘unclean.’ For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.

All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’

Rev. Fr..Valentine de Souza S.J.

GOD’S COMPLAINT

José Antonio Pagola

English Translation by Fr..Valentine de Souza S.J.

A group of Pharisees approached Jesus intent on finding fault with Jesus. They don’t come alone. Some scribes from Jerusalem accompany them, undoubtedly on a mission to protect the orthodoxy of the simple peasants of the villages. What Jesus is doing is dangerous. It’s time to correct him.

They noted that in some respects, his disciples do not follow the tradition of the elders. Although they talk about the behavior of the disciples, their question is directed at Jesus, for they know it is he who has taught them to behave with that surprising freedom. Why?

 Jesus answers them with words of the prophet Isaiah that clarify very well his message and his behavior. We must listen attentively to these words with which Jesus identifies himself completely, because they touch upon something fundamental in our religion. According to the prophet, this is God’s complaint:“ These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
 

 This is always the danger of every religion: to worship God with the lips, repeating formulas, reciting psalms, mouthing beautiful words, while our hearts “are far from him.” However, the worship that pleases God springs from the heart, from an inner adherence, from the hidden depths of the person where all our decisions and plans are born.

“The worship they give me is empty.” When our hearts are far from God, our worship lacks content. Sincere listening to the Word of God, the love of neighbor lack life. Religion becomes something external, practiced as a habit, where the fruits of a life faithful to God are missing.

“Their teachings are but rules taught by men.” In every religion there are traditions that are human. Rules, customs, devotions arise to foster religion in a given culture. They can do much good. But they cause a lot of harm when they draw us away from the Word of God. They must never have priority.

Having quoted the prophet Isaiah, Jesus summarizes his thought with some very serious reflections: “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.” When we blindly adhere to human traditions, we run the risk of forgetting the command of love and going astray from the following of Jesus, incarnate Word of God. In the Christian religion Jesus and his call to love are fundamental. Only then do our human traditions follow, however important they may seem to us. We must never forget what’s essential.

Encourage worship of God from the heart and life

Jose Antonio Pagola, vgentza@euskalnet.net , San Sebastian, Guipuzcoa, Spain.

English Translation by Valentine de Souza S.J. Mandal, Gujarat , India.394650