And You Do Many Other Things Like This.’

Genesis 1:20-2:4
Mark 7:1-13

TRADITION

Mark’s gospel community was rooted in Jewish tradition but when gentiles came in, it faced a lot of consequences. What were the traditions that will be kept aside to accommodate all? In order to buttress this point, Mark tells us the story of Jesus confronting the Pharisees about the tradition which they have multiplied to make things difficult for the people to observe. These externals were not part of the law. In today’s gospel, the Pharisees and scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and his disciples and noticed that some of the disciples were eating with unclean hands, that is without washing them. Mk 7:1-4; Matt 15:1-9.

TORAH OR TRADITION

The Old Testament had given instructions for priests to do certain washing to avoid ceremonial defilement before doing sacrifices. But God had not given any commands specifically for regular people the need to wash in particular ways before all their everyday meals. The Pharisees thought that observing the laws through their children’s own interpretation and tradition would make them super holy and they grew angry that Jesus and His disciples didn’t keep their tradition at this time of course, His fame is spreading far, and wide.

CHRIST FULFILLS THE LAW

Jesus points out the error in their thoughts and actions. They were exalting their own non-biblical traditions but missing the love and justice of the real Law of God. Jesus highlights a sad example of this when he mentions their neglect of their own parents. Mark 7:10-13. The Pharisees were teaching that a man could avoid caring for his own elderly parents by declaring that all of his property was already dedicated to God. They did not have social security and retirement packages back then; aging parents were often very dependent on their adult children to help provide for their basic needs like food and clothing. Imagine allowing your own parents to starve while still claiming that you loved God very much! Jesus rightly called such men out as hypocrites (spiritual pretenders).

TO DO LIST

At the end of today’s gospel, Jesus tells them And you do many things like this? What are the many things we do? What are the things we set as barriers between us and others? What are these barriers? What are the things we do for love, for friendship, for the community, for the whole humanity? What are the things you do to for the love of God and neighbor or you keep still with stiff-necked observance for your selfishness? What about as a nation what do we observe? What are the things that brings barriers and differences within same religious beliefs system and yet different cultural backgrounds?

LiFE LESSON

We must be careful not to let our own traditions and personal beliefs carry the same authority as God’s Word in our lives. God is the author of Sacred scriptures. The Bible is God’s revealed will for us, so we are right to encourage ourselves and other Christians to believe and obey the Bible. But we should not tell others that God wants them to do or not do things if God has not told us that in His Word.

Secondly, we must recognize that simply obeying the letter of the Law is not good enough. God wants our hearts, not just our outward obedience. God has always wanted His people to embrace the spirit or intent of His commands so that we keep them joyfully. The more we do what God tells us, the more we become His image and likeness.

Fr Joseph Osho