Commentary of the Gospel of the 22nd Week of the Ordinary Time

What comes from within is what makes a man impure.

Dear brothers and sisters, peace and blessings.

We’ve finished reading chapter 6 of the Gospel of John. We spent five weeks on it, with the (long) discourse on the Bread of Life. We ended last Sunday with Jesus’ question of whether the disciples also wanted to leave, and Peter’s response: “You alone have the words of eternal life!” We return to the Gospel of Mark, which accompanies us in this cycle B. And we do so with some words from Jesus, words of life, which help us, as always, to better live our faith.

Today’s topic is about rules. Divine law and positive law. Those that come from God and those that we humans give ourselves, in other words, so that we can live together. What we cannot change, and what can be adapted over time. It is important not to confuse them.

Sometimes, there is the temptation to want to change the most demanding provisions, to make it easier to be a Christian: to remove a commandment (or two) or a vow, for religious people. We know that this is not possible. It does not depend on us. Or the opposite temptation, to add new rules that arise from human “wisdom.” One wants to turn the will of man into the will of God. This is how many idolatries arise, and consciences can be violated. One asks in the name of God what God does not want.

It is important to distinguish the fundamental from the secondary. We think the external is very important, but we forget the internal, the fundamental. Jesus criticizes this confusion because it is useless to wash your hands if your heart is very dirty. Of course, washing your hands is not bad. What he may not like is that the meaning of the Law has been lost. Liturgy, rituals, have as their purpose to bring us closer to God. But the Pharisees forgot this, and they observed the rules just because, emptying them of meaning. They honored God with their lips, but not with their hearts. The sacred sense of that Law had been lost. It made it difficult, if not impossible, to access God.

The relationship with God must lead us to the relationship with our brothers and sisters. If we have accepted the Word, it means that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. We must put that received Word into practice, and not just listen to it. The reference to widows and orphans refers us to the most needy people of the time in which the apostle James writes. Deceiving oneself, closing one’s eyes to the needs of our fellow men, means not being a good Christian. In our Western world, widows and orphans are usually more or less well cared for, but there are many others in need. It is a matter of paying attention.

In the Gospel, there is a long list of vices – sins that make man impure, more than washing or not washing hands before eating. Evil purposes, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, greed, injustices, frauds, debauchery, envy, slander, pride, frivolity. All this gives us food for thought for a good examination of conscience. What makes all this bad is that it goes against the dignity of man. It objectifies, denatures the other. It turns him into a means to achieve our end. We can all understand that this cast of evils comes from within, from the heart. Therein lies the origin of many of our sins. That is why we must be careful with what we think or desire because it can be the origin of disordered behavior.

In Jesus’ words in the Gospel, we can find another reason to reflect: our way of participating in celebrations. In other words, it is not advisable to put the “autopilot” on when we go to church. We believers, happy to meet our Lord, should show it in the temple. What we celebrate there should be a manifestation of what we live and feel inside. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks (Lk 6:45). Therefore, when we start singing, do I do it knowing that singing is praise, and not just an adornment of the celebration? When we respond to the celebrant, kneel, stand up or sit down, are we aware of what we are saying and why we are doing it? Do we strive to understand the meaning of each sign, each symbol, each gesture of the Eucharist?

True religion, that of the heart, can only be practiced by those who have come to have an adult and mature faith, by those who are free, sincere, open to the light of God and to the impulses of the Spirit. May participation in this Eucharist help us to approach that goal.

Your brother in faith,