Cure Yourself First

Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

 

The old saying goes, “ I didn’t realize you were such a fool, until you opened your mouth and started speaking.” Perhaps that saying comes from the verse we heard today from the ancient Book of Sirach: “so too does one’s speech disclose the bent of one’s mind. Praise no one before he speaks, for it is then that people are tested.” In other words, what we say reveals who we are.

 

In today’s gospel Jesus, as he usually does, goes even further. He understands that words alone can be deceptive, and that deeds matter even more. People can say one thing but really mean another. Jesus calls the Pharisees hypocrites because their deeds do not match their words. Hypocrite is a Greek word for actor, someone who just plays a role that has nothing to do with the person they really are. We’ve seen the masks they used in those days to cover their faces and indicate emotions like joy or sorrow.

. 

We can easily understand what Jesus means when he criticizes those who find fault in others but fail to see the even greater fault in themselves. “Why do you see the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own.” Cure yourself first, he says, before you find blame in others. He goes on to say that our deeds, more than our words, are a better indicator of what kind of person we are. 

 

In a well-known parable Jesus told about a man who had two sons. When he asked the first to go work in the family fields, he quickly answered yes, but then never showed up to work. The other son bluntly refused, but then thought better of it, and showed up to work. The meaning is clear, it is better to walk the walk than talk the talk. What does this parable mean for us?

 

It is so easy to overlook or forget the words and deeds of Jesus himself. In today’s gospel, He says, “A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil…” These words have a special meaning for us today. Many of us have friends or family that have left the faith and no longer receive the sacraments. Many of us have children who no longer attend Mass and who often refuse to baptize their own children. Some have even become bitterly hostile to Christianity and Catholicism.

 

Despite our chagrin, we must still consider the words and deeds of Jesus in dealing with this modern phenomenon. We must consider that if those we think are lost are actually producing good fruit, it must spring from the goodness of their hearts. That’s what Jesus said. Let me give an example. I know a man who not only left his childhood faith but also dismisses it as so much garbage. Nevertheless, although he will have nothing to do with Mass or the sacraments, he is the most charitable person I know. If you need something, he is always there. His good deeds spring from the goodness within.

 

It would be the height of hypocrisy to blame or condemn someone who does so much good. It would be a great sin to cut off relations with someone like him because he cannot share in our worship. Many people complain today that Christians, especially Catholics, are judgmental or intolerant. But actually, it is our faith that requires us not to judge lest we be judged, and to love our neighbor, whatever their beliefs, as ourselves.

 

Today’s second reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians ends with this exhortation: “my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. “ That’s all it takes.

 

###

Sirach: 27: 4-7

First Corinthians: 15: 54-58

Luke: 6: 39-43 (Sayings of Jesus)

Vanity of Vanities

                   18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  C cycle

 

 

 

Our Lord must have been familiar with today's first reading from the Book of Ecclesiastes. "Vanity of vanities...All is vanity." The words of the ancient author sound very similar to words our Lord would use centuries later. 

 

      "For what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which he has labored under the sun?... even at night his mind is not at rest."

 

Even the illustration of the man who labored so hard and well but who must eventually leave all his property behind at death is very similar to the one our Lord uses in today's gospel.

 

Before we get to the gospel we should realize that in St. Luke's previous chapter, our Lord has really let the Pharisees and the Lawyers have it because of their hypocrisy. He especially reproached them for their greed and selfishness. While they feather their own nests, they load others down with burdens and will not lift a finger to help. The Pharisees and the Lawyers bitterly resent the insulting words of Jesus and a heated argument breaks out. Sure enough a crowd gathers and it is at this point that our gospel reading begins.

 

Someone in the crowd asks his advice about an inheritance. A Rabbi was often asked to settle problems like this one. Jesus declines to offer advice on this particular question but takes the opportunity to warn the crowd. Now whenever we hear a crowd mentioned in the gospels, we can always assume that we are in it and that Jesus is speaking directly to us. He says,

 

      Take care to guard against all greed,

      for though one may be rich,

      one's life does not consist of possessions.

 

Jesus then tells the parable of the rich man who is doing so well and making all kinds of plans for growing and expanding his business. The man thinks that once he reaches all his business goals that he will then be able to "rest, eat, drink, and be merry."

 

Little does he know that none of his plans will come to fruition.

 

      You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you,

      and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?

 

What would we do if we knew that tonight would be our last night on earth? I know that it's morbid to think like this and it certainly is impossible and un-Christian to begin every day thinking that it will be our last. We're supposed to get up every day with joy in our hearts, thankful for all the good things that the Lord has given us. Indeed, we're supposed to offer each day to the Lord hoping that it will be a productive one for ourselves and our loved ones. 

 

Nevertheless, once a year when we hear the words, "Vanity of vanities...all things are vanity," it might not be a bad thing to consider what we might do if we knew this day might be our last. Who would we want to see? What would we say to them? What would we want to do that we have put off? Where would we like to go? What possessions or things would we want to use or enjoy for the last time? What book would we want to read? What song would we want to hear? 

 

Maybe if we thought like this once a year we might appreciate the message in today's readings a little better. St. Paul tells the Colossians and us that if we have accepted Christ there is no longer any room in our life for idols. Now an idol is a false god, a mere human invention. It doesn't have to be a statue or image--it just has to be something that we have let enslave us in one way or another. Paul has a whole list of these things that are hurting us as well as those we love. He says,

 

      Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly;

      immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire,

      and the greed that is idolatry...

      all the anger and quick temper, 

      the malice, the insults, the foul language.

      Stop lying to one another.

 

Our Lord was critical of the leaders of His time because of  their greed and hypocrisy. He and St. Paul might as well have been speaking of our politicians today. Greed, malice, foul language, and lying are part and parcel of politics today. Is it any wonder that our politics are so divisive? If our leaders act the way they do, they are only reflecting what is going on in our society today. Immorality, greed, anger, and lying have become virtues rather than vices. Just look at the way these behaviors are glorified on television.   

 

The readings today are saying that if we reflect on what is really important in life, we can bring peace and harmony into our lives, our families, our cities and our country. We've tried the old way and it doesn't work. What about a world where we recognize that because we all have the same heavenly Father, we are all brothers and sisters. Where,

 

      there is not Greek and Jew,

      circumcision and uncircumcision,

      barbarian, Scythian, slave, free;

      but Christ is all and in all.

###

Reading 1. Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2; 2-23

Reading II. Colossians 3: 1-5, 9-11

Gospel. Luke 12: 13-21 (this night your life will be demanded).

Evil from within

                           22^ndSunday in Ordinary Time

                          

         

In today’s first reading Moses commands the people of Israel to observe the statutes and decrees of the Lord. He says,

Observe them carefully,

for thus will you give evidence 

of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations, 

who will hear of all these statutes and say

‘This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.’

We live in a world today where people do not like rules and regulations. In many cases this attitude springs from our love of liberty and self-determination, but it can also happen that rules and regulations become outmoded and cease to achieve their original purpose. A respect for custom and tradition can be a good thing but sometimes we can take it to extremes.

The Pharisees and scribes made up a small percentage of the Jewish population but Jesus singled them out for most of his criticism. Not only were they noted for their slavish devotion to all the precepts of the Law, but also they were quick to criticize those who did not measure up to their high standards. Time and time again Jesus rebukes them for laying heavy, even impossible burdens on people.

In today’s gospel the Pharisees had criticized the disciples of Jesus for not washing their hands before eating in that same way that parents today might criticize their own children. Now, there is nothing wrong with washing before meals. It is what Jesus called a human precept or tradition. It serves a very basic sanitary purpose but it is not a divine command.

Moreover, when the Pharisees measured themselves and others by their adherence to such rules and rituals, they ignored much more important things. Jesus called them hypocrites: they said one thing but did another. He quoted the prophet Isaiah:

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.

The Pharisees are still with us today. Indeed, we can say that we all have some Pharisee within us. Just the fact that it is so easy to judge other people is a sign. Jesus told us “to judge not, that you may not be judged,” but that does not stop us from judging. How often do we blame or criticize others when we don’t know the whole story or both sides of the issue?

We Catholics are especially prone to elevating human precepts and traditions into divine commandments. It is easy to become self-righteous. We tend to think that the prayers and rituals of our childhood are the only way to worship. It is hard for us to understand that as times change, even beautiful devotions can become obsolete. We rightfully fill our churches with beautiful paintings and statues but not only can they become outmoded but also our devotion to them can obscure their real purpose.

We can follow all the rules and regulations but what good does it do if from our hearts “come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy arrogance, and folly?”

Jesus gave very few commands and said that his yoke was easy and his burden light. About worship, he offered thanks and gave us his flesh and blood on Calvary and in the Mass, which he told us to do in memory of Him. His one command was to love one another, a love that meant serving one another.

In today’s second reading, the Apostle James, one of his closest followers, gave the definition of true religion.

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this:

to care for orphans and widows in their affliction

and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

###

Reading 1.  Deuteronomy 4: 1-2, 6-8

Reading II. James 1: 17-18, 21b -22, 27

Gospel. Mark 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23 (All these evils come from within)