February 9, 2010
TUESDAY OF THE FIFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
1 Kgs 8:22-23, 27-30 / 84:3, 4, 5 and 10, 11 / Mk 7:1-13
YOUR WILL, NOT MINE; YOUR THOUGHTS, NOT MY THOUGHTS
In the responsorial psalm we exclaim, “How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God! My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God” (Ps 84: 4). God’s will, not mine be done; Your thoughts, Lord, not my thoughts, for Your thoughts are far above mine.
In Mark’s Gospel today we see Jesus take on the Pharisees and some Scribes for their hypocrisy. They insist on a strict observance of even the smallest purity regulations while at the same time ignoring the far more important commandments of God regarding justice and mercy. Jesus would not allow human regulations to take on more important status than the commandments of God. Sometimes religious leaders can be devious in these areas because they tend to have the cleverness to justify their hypocrisy and thus promote with self-righteousness and a kind of legitimacy their own agenda. Hypocrisy among so-called religious people is just as prevalent today as it was centuries ago. These words of Jesus are meant to challenge all of us who claim to be His followers today.
If we listen to God’s Word with faith and reverence, it will both enlighten our minds and purify our hearts, thus enabling us to better understand how He wants us to love and serve Him and those around us in this world. For this is God’s will, not ours!
