Dt 4:1-2, 6-8
Moses said to the people:
“Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees
which I am teaching you to observe,
that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land
which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
In your observance of the commandments of the LORD, your God,
which I enjoin upon you,
you shall not add to what I command you nor subtract from it.
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.’
For what great nation is there
that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us
whenever we call upon him?
Or what great nation has statutes and decrees
that are as just as this whole law
which I am setting before you today?”
Mk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
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 summoned the crowd again and said to them,
“Hear me, all of you, and understand.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;
but the things that come out from within are what defile.
“From within people, from their hearts,
come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.
All these evils come from within and they defile.”
[Sorry I've been absent for so long; the last few weeks have been crazy, coming back to Texas and all that.]
ReplyDeletePerhaps this is obvious, but I was struck by the fact that Moses says, "Hear the statutes and decrees which I am teaching you to observe,
that you may... enter in and take possession of the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you." Let me paraphrase: "Observe the commands of the Lord, so you can receive the land He wants to give you." When you put it that way, it seems pretty obvious, doesn't it? The Lord has given us abundant treasure; all we have to do is follow the map He's handed to us. Often we gripe about obedience; people often ask why there are so many rules. Ok, fine, ignore the treasure map. But don't then wonder where God's blessings are.
Another point that may not be genius, but that I just saw for the first time is this: (1) Moses commands the people not to add or subtract from the rules he's giving them. (2) The nations will say how wise the Israelites are. (3) Moses points out how close the Israelites' god is to them. Switch up the order a little bit and I think it becomes more clear: the Israelites have a god intimately in their midst, speaking to them and giving them his law; why would you ever change that? Other nations desperately desired that kind of theophany. What fools would the Israelites be to ignore a law like that?
Finally, a note on the Gospel: some folks - ie, Protestants - would use this passage to argue against Sacred Tradition. That's missing the point - EZ, tell 'em why, if they don't believe me - but what I think is really going on here, from an apologetics perspective, is a keen reminder of original sin. Where do "evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance [and] folly" come from? Not from without. Not from society or our parents pressuring us or anything like that. They come from the heart. They come from within us. The sad reality of the Fall.
Put the new readings up. I want more Bible study, Eric.
ReplyDelete