Today’s
Gospel Text:
Now when the Pharisees gathered together to him, with some of the
scribes, who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they
saw that some of his disciples ate with hands defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees, and
all the Jews, do not eat unless they wash their hands, observing the tradition
of the elders; 4 and when they come from
the market place, they do not eat unless they purify themselves; and there are
many other traditions which they observe, the washing of cups and pots and
vessels of bronze.) 5 And the Pharisees and the
scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the
tradition of the elders, but eat with hands defiled?" 6 And he said to them,
"Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, 'This
people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship
me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.' 8 You
leave the commandment of God, and hold fast the tradition of men." 14 And he called the people
to him again, and said to them, "Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 there is nothing outside a
man which by going into him can defile him; but the things which come out of a
man are what defile him." For
from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft,
murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness,
deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come
from within, and they defile a man." Mk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Reflection: Who does not know that unwashed hands are
unhygienic and can lead to infections and other health complications?
We
have been taught in school and our parents too have taught us and corrected us.
You challenge a health professional and he will give us, if so desired, concrete
evidence under a microscope, to prove their point of contamination and germs.
Yet
in the gospel Jesus, goes all the way out to reprimand the Pharisees and
scribes for trying to impose a view, which seems legitimate, on the disciples
of Jesus.
How
could Jesus not correct the disciples instead, more so since the Old Testament
itself teaches about the need for cleanliness, ritual purity and the avoidance
of defilement?
Whatever
the scientific evidences and concrete proof’s and researches, the reality of
saving the soul is of far more importance than the momentary health and long life
which one seeks to achieve.
Health
is not a higher value than the Kingdom which Jesus wants to give to his beloved
and hence we cannot compromise the Kingdom at the cost of ill-gained health or
even legitimate health.
God
is the giver of all health and he is greater than the health we seek, and his
interest to save our souls for all eternity is far more relevant than the
momentary health we seek in and through wrong means.
Yet
we have Christians dabbling in various New Age practices which go against the
sound doctrine of Christ, in order to gain health and longevity. They will indulge superstitious practices, yoga, zen and vippassana and
other non-Christian meditative techniques, pranic and other forms of cosmic energy healings,
bio-ceramic and homeopathy, all at the risk of losing their soul.
For what does it profit a
man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in
return for his life? Mark 8:36-37
Let
God be first in our lives and then seek the health, if he intends giving it to
us. And as Catholics, do we not have the sacraments of healing, which we need
to seek first?
Prayer: Lord, May
I always seek you first and the healing that comes through you and your most
holy Sacraments.
DD = Dedicated
Discipleship: Come grow
in the Lord with us
