If you were to go out to dinner with my brother, Mikey, you should know that he will automatically pull out individually wrapped moist towelettes from his pocket and place one at everyone’s place with the understanding that we are all obviously unclean and that he is heroically helping us behave like civilized people as opposed to Neanderthals. He is a self-proclaimed germa-phobe and hand washing and purification rituals are his obsession. I’ve witnessed him use rubber gloves to pull his clean laundry out of the dryer. He has the uncanny talent of being able to open all doors both in public and in his own home with his elbow. He is completely horrified in places like Disneyland where children everywhere recklessly touch railings with their hands and heaven forbid with their mouths. He replaces his pillowcase with a clean one every single day. One time my family was at mass together and strategically right before the Our Father when the congregation holds hands, I feel something nudge my side; it was my brother handing me the mandatory bottle of Purell that I was forced to use before even thinking about holding his hand, and I was also instructed to pass it down to everyone in our pew. I’m not making stuff up people! The Purell comes back out directly after the Sign of Peace! Now, I am not reporting these things to make you think my brother is insane (wink wink), in fact, he proudly proclaims all these same stories so as to evangelize the obvious truth about the importance of clean hands, and today’s gospel just might be one of his favorites for that very reason!
The Pharisees were trying to document as many things against Jesus and his disciples as possible so they spent a lot of their time watching their every move. Things haven’t changed much in two thousand years and we still have people in our churches that are concerned with the minutia. Instead of singing the song, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love,” they sing, “They’ll know we are Christians by our ritual.” Again and again, the Pharisees have left out the “why” and Jesus used this opportunity to remind them that the “why” is the very foundation of all of it and without the foundation; the ritual is just a show. He points these educated scholars to their own scripture when Isaiah talks about this very thing: “Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: This people honors 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.”
Even if the Pharisees never quite understood…do WE get it? Jesus wants our hearts in the game and tradition, rules, and rituals were designed to turn our hearts toward God, change our minds to be more like Christ, and from there we will be inspired to serve others in love. Sometimes we put the man made rules and rituals above the ones that God specifically gave us. God’s commands are all about relationship with Him and how to treat one another while our rules might be more about proving or religious devotion as some sort of show.
Today’s gospel reminds us that if we can focus so much energy on cleaning our hands (or on religious bells and whistles) then we should be able to also obsessively seek purification of our hearts. A purified heart allows the eyes of our soul to see the main thing and the main thing is to love like Jesus loves, to serve like Jesus serves, to have mercy like Jesus has mercy, to forgive like Jesus forgives, to heal like Jesus heals, and to do all the things like Jesus does all the things. The “why” gives the ritual its power and there is something so beautiful in understanding the purpose of something. Purpose not only unfurls our wings but give us the lift to actually take off and fly. So please pass the spiritual Purell that sanitizes our thoughts, words, actions, and gives us a reason to soar. It is well with my soul.
NOTE: In no way am I suggesting that my brother is a Pharisee, just that he would approve of the hand-washing portion of the story.
Reading 1 GN 1:20—2:4A
God said,
"Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures,
and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky."
and so it happened:
God created the great sea monsters
and all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems,
and all kinds of winged birds.
God saw how good it was, and God blessed them, saying,
"Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas;
and let the birds multiply on the earth."
Evening came, and morning followed–the fifth day.
Then God said,
"Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures:
cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds."
and so it happened:
God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle,
and all kinds of creeping things of the earth.
God saw how good it was.
Then God said:
"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air, and the cattle,
and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground."
God created man in his image;
in the divine image he created him;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying:
"Be fertile and multiply;
fill the earth and subdue it.
Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,
and all the living things that move on the earth."
God also said:
"See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth
and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;
and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,
and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,
I give all the green plants for food."
And so it happened.
God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.
Evening came, and morning followed–the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.
Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing,
he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.
So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,
because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.
Such is the story of the heavens and the earth at their creation.
"Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures,
and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky."
and so it happened:
God created the great sea monsters
and all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems,
and all kinds of winged birds.
God saw how good it was, and God blessed them, saying,
"Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas;
and let the birds multiply on the earth."
Evening came, and morning followed–the fifth day.
Then God said,
"Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures:
cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds."
and so it happened:
God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle,
and all kinds of creeping things of the earth.
God saw how good it was.
Then God said:
"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air, and the cattle,
and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground."
God created man in his image;
in the divine image he created him;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying:
"Be fertile and multiply;
fill the earth and subdue it.
Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,
and all the living things that move on the earth."
God also said:
"See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth
and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;
and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,
and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,
I give all the green plants for food."
And so it happened.
God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.
Evening came, and morning followed–the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.
Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing,
he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.
So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,
because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.
Such is the story of the heavens and the earth at their creation.
Responsorial PsalmPS 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (2ab) O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you set in place—
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son of man that you should care for him?
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
You have made him little less than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
putting all things under his feet.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
All sheep and oxen,
yes, and the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,
and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you set in place—
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son of man that you should care for him?
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
You have made him little less than the angels,
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
putting all things under his feet.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
All sheep and oxen,
yes, and the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,
and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
Alleluia PS 119:36, 29B
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Incline my heart, O God, to your decrees;
And favor me with your law.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Incline my heart, O God, to your decrees;
And favor me with your law.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel MK 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.
And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed,
the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.)
So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,
"Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders
but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?"
He responded,
"Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites,
as it is written:
This people honors 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."
He went on to say,
"How well you have set aside the commandment of God
in order to uphold your tradition!
For Moses said,
Honor your father and your mother,
and Whoever curses father or mother shall die.
Yet you say,
'If someone says to father or mother,
"Any support you might have had from me is qorban"'
(meaning, dedicated to God),
you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother.
You nullify the word of God
in favor of your tradition that you have handed on.
And you do many such things."
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.
And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed,
the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.)
So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,
"Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders
but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?"
He responded,
"Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites,
as it is written:
This people honors 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."
He went on to say,
"How well you have set aside the commandment of God
in order to uphold your tradition!
For Moses said,
Honor your father and your mother,
and Whoever curses father or mother shall die.
Yet you say,
'If someone says to father or mother,
"Any support you might have had from me is qorban"'
(meaning, dedicated to God),
you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother.
You nullify the word of God
in favor of your tradition that you have handed on.
And you do many such things."
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