Pope Francis has been depicted by the media as a proponent of the “liberal” agenda. He tells people to go to frequent confession; in a recent meeting with a Marian group, he encouraged Catholics to say the rosary; he spoke recently of the sins of lust and gluttony; he continually urges all Catholics to evangelize and lead souls to Christ. Which of these messages has been reported on the evening news? None, of course. Instead, a small piece of a hundred-item agenda, one that touches on “gay rights” is what has been publicized.
Not only the media, but each of us, likes to create a version of the Church that conforms to our political biases and personal agenda. Jesus faced this issue when dealing with the religious leaders of his day (Mark 7:1-13).
“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…”
Why do you think the Pharisees and scribes gathered around Jesus? Do you think they wanted to listen to his message and repent of their sins? It doesn’t seem that way. It seems they were trying to catch Jesus make a mistake. Central to their form of religion were the purification rites. Notice that they did not catch Jesus or all his disciples breaking their rules, but only “some” of his disciples. Why didn’t Jesus train them better?
“Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders, but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?” He responded, “Well did Isaiah prophecy about your hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honor 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.”
These religious leaders created their own version of religion. They took a small piece of Jewish practice, namely the washing rites, and blew it out of proportion. For them, this was the main thing that God expected of his people. They equated holiness with outward observance. Honoring God with one’s lips and ignoring the condition of their hearts makes one’s worship nothing more than going through the motions.
They also had a “human precept” that told them they were to give their extra money to the temple treasury instead of using it to take care of aging parents. This clearly violates the fourth commandment. Yet they did not make this connection. Many of them drew their salaries from the temple treasury and so they were more interested in the organization that supported them than they were in caring for their parents.
Most of us engage in various religious practices, and that is good, if they are expressions of our love for God. What’s inside our hearts? Do we love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength? And are we accepting the full truth of our faith or picking and choosing what we feel comfortable with?
